Christmas Tree Farming: the History of an Industry

The history of the Christmas tree farming industry in the United States dates back to the year 1851, when an entrepreneurial farmer named Mark Carr hauled two sleds full of evergreen trees into New York City to sell them.  As the story goes, he sold all the trees, and thus a new industry was born.  In 1901, Christmas tree farming began on a larger scale when a farmer in New Jersey planted 25,000 Norway spruce trees.  He harvested and sold them just 7 years later for $1.00 per tree.

The Christmas tree farming industry experienced slow growth during the first half of the 20th century.  In 1940, it was estimated that some 90% of all Christmas trees were still coming from forests.  It was a family tradition to select, cut, and drag the family tree home each year for decoration and display.  Most families could not imagine the idea of someone else selecting their Christmas tree for them.

After World War II, Christmas tree faming came to be considered a supplemental part of agriculture.  For example, if a farmer had some rough land that wasn't good for growing any other crops, they might plant evergreen trees on it instead.  Because the harvest occurs in winter, Christmas tree crops were a good way for a farmer to round out the year's business and inject some additional cash into their finances at the end of the year.

During the 1960's, the industry saw part-time Christmas tree farming decline, while more full-time farming operations sprang up.  The primary regions where this business began to flourish were in the Pacific Northwest, North Carolina, and the upper Midwest, particularly Michigan.

The market for live Christmas trees continued to grow until the 1980's, when an oversupply situation sent prices into a downward spiral.  Trees that once sold for $18.00 to $30.00 each began selling for as little as $5.00 each in the early 1990's.  This drove many tree farmers out of the market.

Also during the 1990's, the use of real trees saw a decline, as many families began to choose artificial trees over live trees.  There were many reasons for this shift.  For some, the idea of spending money on a tree only once was more appealing than a continued expenditure year after year.  For others, convenience was a factor.  Many families also chose artificial trees for safety reasons, because live trees burn more easily.  There was also the thought that the cutting of Christmas trees is contributing to deforestation.

In the last decade, live tree purchases have been back on the increase.  More people understand that live Christmas trees come from managed farms rather than forests.  Also, we have better knowledge today that live trees are really only a fire hazard when they aren't watered properly.  With the advent of automated Christmas tree waterers, people don't have to remember to water their trees on a daily basis anymore.

Christmas trees were added to the U.S. agricultural census in 1997.  According to the 2002 census taken by the USDA, nearly 22,000 U.S. farms grow evergreen trees for the purpose of cutting for Christmas tree sales.  In that census, the top three states for Christmas tree production were Oregon, North Carolina, and Michigan, respectively.

It is hard to determine where this market will go in the future.  Today people are more knowledgeable that live Christmas trees do not result in ecological depletion because tree production is strictly a "farming business."  For the most part, the decision to purchase a live versus an artificial Christmas tree is a personal preference, usually handed down from generation to generation.