Christmas tree farm, Ellington, Connecticut
© 2015 J. G. Coleman
Cold winds of December rake through acres of Christmas trees and howl as they reach the distant woodlands. Across the countryside, the setting sun casts rich, molten light which imparts the illusion of warmth in a land that aches for snow.
The custom of decorating Christmas trees was originally brought to North America by German settlers in the 1700s, but didn’t really begin catching on until the mid-1800s. By 1901, the first Christmas tree farm in the USA was established, though it was a rarity in its day. In fact, nine out of every ten Christmas trees were cut from forests right up until the 50s. That changed dramatically over the past several decades as tree plantations rapidly expanded; now almost all Christmas trees are farm-grown.
Many different evergreens such as firs, spruces and pines may be cultivated for use as Christmas trees and an 8-foot specimen generally grows in 6 to 10 years. Farmers oftentimes plant new trees every year or two, ensuring that a new generation is reaching maturity every December. The trees seen on this plantation are of mixed heights –between 2 to 4 feet– so it will likely be another couple years before any of them are ready to be harvested and decorated.
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