Tycoss
Chumono
I recently posted my cotoneaster mame experiments. Here are a few other species I’m playing with for tiny bonsai:
What you describe for shoot reduction is pretty much what I do with my larger spruce. I wanted this one to adjust a bit longer than my big guys, as it didn’t get as vigorous as fast. I think it’s pretty healthy now, so I’ll start reducing new growth in August like I do for the others. Thanks for your interest.I had to look up the nailwort, Paronychia sessiflora, that was a new one for me. Related to chickweeds, in the Caryophyllales, the same family as beets, cactus and carnations. Interesting, a fair number of herbs can make interesting bonsai, even though they don't have true wood with growth rings and such. Neat. Nice experiment.
I really like your spruce. For the time being, I would keep all the branches. Sometime late summer I would prune all the new candles back to a bud. Each new growth will have a bud or two form along its length. Right now they will be too small to see. But by the end of summer you should be able to see them. Prune all your new growth to these buds, roughly cutting most of the new growth by half. This will prevent excessive elongation, and force some back budding. It will help get more dense foliage going. Do this for a few more years, then see if you really want to remove any of the major branches. I "kinda" like it just as it is.
Trying to learn at least. A couple of my better collections from last spring should be ready for gentle work this fall. I’m super excited about them.I forgot you have several spruces, and know what you are doing with them.