Though it seems Christmas decorations have been on display in stores since the Fourth of July, Thanksgiving weekend marks the traditional beginning of the season. Time to untangle those lights, dust off the 12-foot inflatable snowglobe your neighbors have come to love and load up the family for a trip to the Christmas tree farm.
But from the moment you tag that perfect tree to the day it ends up on the sidewalk, there are a few things your expert Kent County conifer farmers want you to remember.
1. Buy a fresh one.
“You need to by it fresh-cut here in Delaware. If you buy it at Walmart it’s been cut for probably two months. If you buy it fresh, it will hold its needles better, it’ll be greener and fresher and you’re going to have that great scent. It’s going to be a much better value and you’ll be supporting your local economy.”
- Cheryl Epps, Loblolly Acres tree farm
2. Choose the right species of tree.
“The biggest seller in the nation is the Fraser fir, that’s the No. 1 tree. It’s the Fraser fir simply because it has such a pungent fragrance and it has a beautiful color with blue on the tops of needles and green underneath. Its needle retention is 97.9% — that makes it No. 1; when you can take it in your carpeted living room and it doesn’t shed any needles.
“The Norway spruce was at one time the top Christmas tree, it grows perfectly, it grows in tiers so it’s very well-balanced. Some people also like a white pine because the needles are very soft.”
- Bonnie Poynter, Poynter’s Tree Farm & Christmas Shop
3. Measure twice, cut once.
“The main thing is to know what size tree your room will take, and remember when you put it in the stand it will grow about a foot; some people forget that.
“If it’s too tall when you get it home, you can cut off from the base, but sometimes your limbs might not be symmetrical. And you don’t want to trim too much off the top — it ruins the shape of the whole tree. Also, make sure it can get through the front door or the back door and make sure you have a big enough vehicle to haul it.”
- Jack Egolf, E-Z Acres Tree Farm
