'We’ll have enough, but we won’t have a lot extra': Christmas tree growers bracing for another busy season
Christmas tree growers are anticipating another busy holiday season as demand continues to outpace supply across Canada.
Tree farmers in Chatham-Kent, like Andy Watson, believe they should have enough to make it through to Christmas Eve, but admits the best trees go early in the season.
“The season is shaping up real well,” Watson said. “We started last weekend.”
Watson said the last weekend of November and first two weekends in December are typically the busiest, with a rising number of customers coming from outside Chatham-Kent.
“It's amazing the number of people that we're getting from Windsor and that way. I mean, our location you would think Chatham was our market but in reality we probably sell more trees going west than go to Chatham.”
Watson has been growing Christmas trees on his farm near Pain Court for 33 years and explained each tree takes about 10 years to grow.
“We have lots of trees early in the season. Our system is to plant one where there’s been one cut.” Watson added, “We’ll have enough, but we won’t have a lot extra.”
Elsewhere, prices have increased compared to last year.
“So far, the farms that have opened are saying you know it's a good season,” Shirley Brennan, executive director of the Canadian Christmas Trees Association, told CTV News Windsor on Friday.
“We are still seeing that demand for the trees and that less trees have been planted over the last 10 years, so that’s going to impact some things,” Brennan explained. “Having said that, we also know that farms dictate how many trees they have and from what I’m being told they are good for the season.”
Brennan said shortages elsewhere in Canada can be traced back to the 2008 financial crisis, when Christmas tree farms did not expand as much or closed altogether.
“We have seen through Stats Canada that 30 million less trees were planted in the last 10 years, which is startling for us. In Ontario, that's about 8,000 acres of Christmas trees that have folded up due to retirement or deaths.”
Brennan told CTV News Windsor the impacts of one bad season due to climate are also felt years later.
“That is the hard part about Christmas tree farming because we plan for 10 years and then we just have to roll with the punches of whether or not Mother Nature, who is our silent partner, if she cooperates with us,” she said.
Brennan noted inflation has pushed prices up about 10 per cent on average, with some wholesalers limiting their orders to ensure there’s enough trees to go around.
“It’s because the things on our farms have gone up,” Brennan said. “Fuel to run our equipment. Fertilizer itself went up 25 per cent this year so things we didn’t have control of are effecting it.”
Brennan also suggested the pandemic led to higher demand for Christmas trees because people were spending more time at home and with family, creating new traditions.
“It’s a very personal experience. So the reason I get a Christmas tree is totally different from the reason you might get one,” Brennan explained. “But in the end, it’s bringing families together. It’s getting outside. It’s enjoying it and creating those memories.”
Chatham-Kent Tourism has created a Christmas Tree Farm trail highlighting the four tree farms in the municipality.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
How quietly promised law changes in the 2024 federal budget could impact your day-to-day life
The 2024 federal budget released last week includes numerous big spending promises that have garnered headlines. But, tucked into the 416-page document are also series of smaller items, such as promising to amend the law regarding infant formula and to force banks to label government rebates, that you may have missed.
Which foods have the most plastics? You may be surprised
'How much plastic will you have for dinner, sir? And you, ma'am?' While that may seem like a line from a satirical skit on Saturday Night Live, research is showing it's much too close to reality.
opinion I've been a criminal attorney for decades. Here's what I think about the case against Trump
Joey Jackson, a criminal defence attorney and a legal analyst for CNN, outlines what he thinks about the criminal case against Donald Trump in the 'hush money trial.'
$3.8M home in B.C.'s Okanagan has steel shell for extra wildfire protection
A home in B.C.'s Okanagan that features a weathering steel shell designed to provide some protection against wildfires has been listed for sale at $3.8 million.
Diver pinned under water by an alligator figured he had choice. Lose his arm or lose his life
An alligator attacked a diver on April 15 as he surfaced from his dive, nearly out of air. His tank emptied with the gator's jaws crushing the arm he put up in defence.
Psychologist becomes first person in Peru to die by euthanasia after fighting in court for years
A Peruvian psychologist who suffered from an incurable disease that weakened her muscles and had her confined to her bed for several years, died by euthanasia, her lawyer said Monday, becoming the first person in the country to obtain the right to die with medical assistance.
Mystery surrounds giant custom Canucks jerseys worn by Lions Gate Bridge statues
The giant stone statues guarding the Lions Gate Bridge have been dressed in custom Vancouver Canucks jerseys as the NHL playoffs get underway.
Celebrity designer sentenced to 18 months in prison for smuggling crocodile handbags
A leading fashion designer whose accessories were used by celebrities from Britney Spears to the cast of the 'Sex and the City' TV series was sentenced Monday to 18 months in prison after pleading guilty in Miami federal court on charges of smuggling crocodile handbags from her native Colombia.
Wildfire leads to evacuation order issued for northeast Alberta community
An evacuation order was issued on Monday afternoon for homes in the area of Cold Lake First Nation.