Selecting a Christmas tree has become the highlight of the holiday season for many families: Spending the day at your favorite “cut- your- own” Christmas tree farm, or shopping at a Christmas tree sales lot, creates memories for families that last a lifetime.
Some news media outlets have been suggesting that there is a shortage of fresh cut Christmas trees. Yes, this is true, including in Ohio. This is especially true with the Fraser, Balsam, Douglas, and Concolor or White firs. Normally pine Christmas trees take three to five years to produce a six-foot tree while most of the firs may take as many as seven years to produce the same height. The Fraser fir may take even longer to produce a six-foot Christmas tree from seven to ten years.
According to Tim O’Connor, executive director of the National Christmas Tree Association, the firs with their soft needles and somewhat better needle retention have increased in demand throughout the country. With weather extremes, longer production time, loss of labor due to Covid, and high demand have left spot shortages of some Christmas tree varieties across the United States.
I often hear big box stores Christmas trees were cut weeks or two months ago and are not going to hold up. The wholesale precut industry irrigates Christmas trees to make sure the trees are full of water before they are cut. After harvesting, the trees are stored in a cold storage area prior to and including shipment. If the receiver of these precut trees store the trees in an outdoor shaded area away from the wind and supply provisions for water if needed, they will stay as fresh as when they were cut.
Though Ohio has seen some weather extremes it has not been out of normal. Most of Ohio’s cut your own Christmas tree farms are family owned and according to the Ohio Christmas Tree Association should have good supply with reasonable prices comparable to last year. A fir that many cut your own Christmas tree farms produce in the area is the Canaan fir (Abies balsamea). The Canaan fir is remarkably like the Fraser fir. Canaan firs have attractive dark green, relatively soft foliage, and stiff branches to support decorations. Needle retention is around 3 – 4 weeks and produces a pleasant balsam aroma.
To tell if a cut Christmas tree is fresh, look for trees that have a crisp fragrance. Another way is to gently bend one of the trees needles between your thumb and fore finger. The needle should bend and not snap. Lift the tree up a few inches, and then tap it on the ground. If brown needles from deep inside the tree fall or lodge in the branches, no need to worry, as this is a natural condition as conifers or evergreen trees do drop their old needles. However, if the tree sheds an abundant number of green needles from the outer part of the branches, then the tree is probably dry or not fresh.
More than 90% of the Christmas trees sold in Ohio are one of seven types: Scotch pine, Eastern white pine, Colorado spruce, Douglas fir, Fraser fir, Canaan fir, and White or Concolor fir. Each of these trees has something unique to offer consumers, whether it is the length of the needles, the aroma, or the color of the tree.
The most common question people ask is, “Which tree should I buy?” There is no right answer to that question, the right Christmas tree is very much a matter of personal taste. Some other items to consider include overall appearance, branch characteristics, height, width, and price.
To help narrow your choice, here is some information on Ohio’s most common seven Christmas tree types:
Pinus sylvestris or Scotch pines are historically the most popular Christmas pine tree grown and sold throughout the country. Needles are 1 to 3 inches long and are somewhat stiff. The branches can support many decorations and heavy ornaments. Scotch pines have needle retention in the home lasting 3 – 4 weeks and have a pleasant pine scent.
Pinus strobus or Eastern white pine is the second most popular pine Christmas tree species. Its needles are 2 to 5 inches in length. Eastern white pines have slender, flexible branches capable of supporting a few, small decorations. It has needle retention of around 3-4 weeks in the home. White pines also have a nice, pleasant pine scent.
Picea pungens or Colorado spruces have 1 to 1.5-inch needles that are very sharply pointed and stiff. The colors of this tree vary from blue to green. This spruce will support many decorations and heavy ornaments. Needle retention on a Colorado spruce is not the best lasting only about 1-2 weeks in the home. This Christmas tree also requires consistent watering and will not tolerate dry tree stands. If the stand goes dry, many needles will drop. The sharp needles may make it an inappropriate choice for homes with small children.
Before setting up your Christmas tree, remove approximately one inch off the base of the trunk. Secure the tree in a container suitable for fresh cut trees and water within thirty minutes of cutting. The tree stand should have the capacity to hold at least 1 gallon of water. Sufficient water helps the tree keep its moisture, needles, and fragrance. Check the tree’s water supply daily as it may consume up to two pints to a gallon of water each day while it is in the home. Try to keep your tree away from fireplaces, heat registers, television sets, and other heat generating sources as these sources will shorten the needle retention in the home.
