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CHRISTMAS TREE SELECTION & CARE

   
Home decorating with evergreens had its early beginnings during mid-winter festivals in ancient times when evergreen foliage was brought inside for decoration. In the early 1500's, the first documented history of a decorated evergreen tree is linked to the Alsace region, straddling France and Germany.
    
From that point forward, most Christmas tree history and development is credited to Germany.
      

Cut Christmas Trees

Early German Christmas trees were decorated with gold foil, colored paper, apples and confections. It's said that Martin Luther was the first to use candles to decorate a Christmas tree.
  
German immigrants brought the Christmas tree custom to England, where it later emigrated to America. A colleague of Thomas Edison's is credited with creating the first string of electric Christmas lights in 1882, thereby cutting down on the hazard of using lit candles on a flammable tree.
   


O Christmas Tree song

O Christmas tree, O Christmas tree
How are thy leaves so verdant?
Not only in the summertime
But ev'n in winter is thy prime
O Christmas tree, O Christmas tree
How are thy leaves so verdant?
  

  
O Christmas tree, O Christmas tree
Much pleasure doth thou bring me!
For every year the Christmas tree
Brings to us all both joy and glee
O Christmas tree, O Christmas tree
Much pleasure doth thou bring me!
  
O Christmas tree, O Christmas tree
Thy candles shine out brightly!
Each bough doth hold its tinny light
That makes each toy to sparkle bright
O Christmas tree, O Christmas tree
thy candles shine out brightly!
   

Note
: Lyrics to this song seem to vary, but the
lyrics above seem to be the most common.
Definition of VERDANT -
Green with vegetation; covered with a green
growth; green in color.


US Christmas tree history
The first retail Christmas tree sales lot in the United States was opened in 1851 in New York City. Franklin Pierce, 14th President of the United States, brought the first Christmas tree into the White House in 1856. President Calvin Coolidge started the national Christmas tree lighting ceremony in 1923.
    
Several varieties of Christmas trees have been used through the years and across the globe. The most common Christmas trees in Pennsylvania today are Scotch Pine, White Pine, Colorado Spruce, Norway Spruce, Douglas Fir and Fraser Fir, with prices ascending in that order (Fir trees are the most expensive). Christmas tree plantations are so common in Western Pennsylvania that Indiana, PA is known as the 'Christmas Tree Capital of the World.'
  


 


VARIETIES OF CHRISTMAS TREES
  
  

Balsam Fir - Abies balsamea

  

Balsam Fir
Photo: Robert H. Mohlenbrock @ USDA-NRCS PLANTS Database / USDA NRCS. 1995. Northeast wetland flora: Field office guide to plant species. Northeast National Technical Center, Chester, PA.
     

Colorado Spruce - Picea pungens

Blue Spruce Christmas Tree

Blue Spruce needles

     

Douglas Fir - Pseudostsuga menziesii

Douglas Fir Christmas tree

Douglas Fir

     

Eastern White Pine - Pinus strobus

White Pine Christmas Tree

White Pine needles
     

Fraser Fir - Abies fraseri

Fraser Fir Christmas Tree

Fraser Fir needles
     

Norfolk Island Pine - Araucaria Hetrophylla

Norfolk Island PineThis tree is often used as a potted indoor live Christmas tree and kept as a houseplant, since it isn't hardy in Northeast climates.

  

Norway Spruce - Picea abies

  

 
     

Scotch Pine - Pinus sylvestris

Scotch Pine Christmas Tree

Scotch Pine branches
     

 


CHRISTMAS TREE CARE
(from our Garden Questions web page)


  
What type of fresh-cut Christmas tree lasts the longest?
   
Fir trees are still our favorite. Their extra cost is really worth it when it comes to their longevity, soft needles and that "fresh-peeled Orange" aroma.  Douglas Fir is quite popular, but we like the Fraser Fir, with its thick needles highlighted with silver undersides.
KEY TIPS: When you get your cut tree home, cut a thin sliver off the base of the trunk and store the tree in a container of water in the garage until the tree is placed in its stand.


Cutting a thin sliver off the base of the
trunk will improve water uptake

Display your tree away from hot air vents and pay close attention to the water level, especially the first week or two. Placing a large plastic tree bag around the base of the tree when setting it up makes removal after Christmas much neater.


  
What can we do to keep our Christmas tree, wreaths and greens fresh longer?

We recommend spraying them with an "anti-desiccant" such as "WILT PRUF" before you bring them inside (follow label directions). This milky-looking substance dries to a shiny clear coating that helps seal in moisture, keeping greens fresh longer.


   
How should we handle our live balled-and-burlapped (B&B) Christmas tree?

1) Try to dig a hole for the tree in advance of planting time, on a day when the weather is decent. Cover your soil pile with a waterproof tarp. Your hole should be no deeper than the root ball and about 12 inches wider on each side.  2) Don't keep the tree in the house any longer than necessary -- two weeks should be the maximum.  3) Only water the tree once or twice while it is inside.  Remember - the tree is dormant and has lower water requirements.  4)  Locate the tree away from a heat source.  5) Lift the tree by the root ball when moving it. "Double team it" when lifting for safety and ease.  6) Water the tree thoroughly following outdoor planting.  7) Remove constricting ropes and synthetic wraps from the trunk area and root ball when planting.  8) Stake the tree (if it is at all "wobbly") for the first growing season.  9) Plant the tree where it will have adequate room to mature.  10) Water the tree once a week in dry weather during the first growing season. Christmas tree planting photos
  

  

CHRISTMAS TREE TRIVIA

  
Approximately 28 million real Christmas
trees are sold annually in the US


  
US Christmas tree production covers about 500,000
acres. Each acre of trees provides the daily
oxygen requirement of 18 people


  
The average time required to grow a cut
Christmas tree is 7 years


Christmas trees growing near Indiana, Pa.
The Christmas Tree Capital of the World


  
The top six Christmas tree producing states are:
Oregon, North Carolina, Michigan, Pennsylvania,
Wisconsin and Michigan


  
Top selling Christmas trees are:
Balsam Fir, Douglas Fir, Fraser Fir, Noble Fir,
Scotch Pine, Virginia Pine and White Pine


  

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