Anybody ever try planting a few trees for Xmas a few years out? I heard Norway Spruce grows fast. I guess you'd plant one or two every year and after 4 or 5 years, you'd be cutting and replacing that removed tree. Trees are over 100 bucks where I live. I could do the pruning and shaping every year during growth.
For several years we bought live tree's for decoration, then planted them outside to create a fence row to the neighbors property line. We always got Norway Spruce.
When my folks divorced back in the 70's my mom got little trees from the state and planted them in the open space in the back yard. She also had a property dispute with the neighbor so planted trees on the new property line. Few years later we started selling trees at $20 each including our own. She never replanted and they got too big. IIRC correctly they were Norway spruces. Bad memories of having to cut around them with the push mower when I was a kid. I often wonder if the new owners cut any of them down as they had grown rather large. Mom passed in 2022 and the house had been sold in 2020. IMO go for it. Worth a shot if you have the room. Check with your state as they may sell saplings to residents.
Christmas trees used to sell for about $20 maybe 8 yrs ago. Today, they are $100 and up. I use a small fake table top tree. All I can handle. I have boxes and boxes of decorations that haven't seen the light of day in years.
I do prefer the fresh cut tree smell. We have a fake tree to use for a while. Not paying 100 plus for a tree. They say norway spruce could reach 10 feet after 5 years so I'm thinking it would take 4 years before first harvest. A 10 foot tree would be ridiculous in most homes
Sounds like it would work. Personally I'd plan 3-4 at a time if you have the room. When it comes harvest time pick the best one then either let the others go for a couple years longer to see if they get better or cull them out for more room
Most Christmas trees up here are balsam fir as they are native and grow well. We had some when I was a kid in a back field that kinda got taken care of. Mowed a couple times a year and if you felt bold you would try and trim them. For some reason wasps really liked making nests in the trees. I had mentioned to the wife clearing an acre or two and planting trees to add a service to our farm. There seems to be several around that have small groves of trees and are only open until that yrs supply is gone. We haven’t gotten there, but plan on doing it in the future. It’s takes 5-7 years up here to get a good sized tree.
My dad grew a few Christmas trees for a few years. Theres not just pruning but dusting for insect pests. For a few years he dug up the same tree. It would spend the year recovering from being dug up and then he would dig it up again. Then one year it had a big growth spurt anyway and wouldn't fit in the house.
There are thousands of Eastern Red Cedars growing wild around here so that the route we go. My wife would go buy a $100-$150 tree if I didn’t put my foot down, I just can’t wrap my mind around buying a tree that’s going to be tossed 2-3 weeks later when there are literally thousands of freebies available that can be used. My buddies wife planted several hundred spruces for Christmas trees, I can’t recall the specific type. They will likely start selling off a few of them them this year.
I met someone in Colorado, his family sold Christmas Trees. They had acreage in the mountains, they had different plots of saplings/1 year/2 year etc. Once a year they would cut the oldest plot bring them to the Front Range to sell at Christmas. Replant that plot in the spring. Reminds of Backwoods Savage 's 3 year plan. Also, for a certain price, you could offer them the "magical experience" of coming to your land, picking it out, and watch you cut it down, sounds like fun compared to stumping all the way to the National Forest zone to cut down, drag it out and haul it one's self.
My parents have huge pine trees along a grass lane. My dad said he planted them for Christmas trees, but could never bring himself to cut them down. Now it would be a pretty penny to fell them. So Im sure it will be my issue someday.
We have a bunch of cedars and, I think, white pine that grow like weeds. They don't do a very good job of holding ornaments though. My FIL planted a few Blue Spruce. I would go that route for growing/cutting if they weren't so expensive.
This is an Eastern White Pine. My mom was hell bent on using a live tree for a Christmas tree one year and planting after the holidays. I think it was 1999 or 2000. My brother and I went to a tree farm in the snow to dig it out in a 2wd square body Chevy truck. It was a 6ft tree and neither of us knew how big the root ball would be...or how heavy it was. We got back, it wouldn't fit in the house. So it stayed outside and I ended up planting it a few days later. I bought the house off my parents years ago when they built their home and then used it as a rental for the last 10 years. First picture is from April 2019 and the second is from April 2021. The pine beetles destroyed it within 2 years. I ended up cutting it down.
Really great idea, I always hated just tossing our tree after it's dead and dried up. I know someone mentioned once keeping in burlap sack but I have no clue how that would work inside but I'd love to replant it. If I had more sunlight I'd plant a few trees. I always ask our Xmas tree guy who we became friends with over the years, said it took about 7-10 years for it be mature and grown enough to cut. I couldn't believe it was that long. That's a lot of planning ahead!! We've been getting our tree same place for over 10+ yrs, and boy the prices have gone up. use to be $50-$60 now they are $85-$100.....YIKES!!!! BUT it's a family owned and operated Xmas tree farm and I'd rather give them the $$ then the box stores.
I've bought only a very few Christmas trees (we cut most on our own property) when we first got married and I remember the first time I saw prices above $10. Inflation...
LOL, I've had a few Charlie Brown wild-from-the-forest eastern white pine Christmas trees. Paper and popcorn ornaments. The trees from todays farms are quite pampered compared to 70 years ago.
