James Rieppel, whose family owns and operates the Hickory Ridge Tree Farm in Alexandria, said people started coming to collect their trees since the previous week. The most common tree species used for Christmas trees in Nebraska include Balsam Fir, Blue Spruce, Concolor Fir, Douglas Fir, Fraser Fir, Scotch Pine, or Eastern White Pine.
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“We served at a time overseas in different places of the United States, and these guys they probably can’t go to a place to get a tree, where here their trees are there for them to pick”, Don Southworth of American Legion Post 469 said.
Of those who purchase real trees, 85% of them buy a pre-cut tree rather than chopping down their own. For others, it’s all about creating a holiday tradition.
There are 32 Christmas tree farms across the state, and with the rise of agri-tourism, the idea of a real tree is making a comeback. But since its wet they’ll all just stick together. Harper has bought artificial trees in the past but said it’s just not the same.
Thanksgiving has come and gone and many of you will be stopping by Christmas tree lots to find that flawless tree for your home. “After a rough year that’s kind of nice to have”, said New. “We’re excited because it is our baby’s first Christmas”, Daniel Kelley, a tree shopper, said.
Christmas tree shopper Bruce Bednarchuk says, “This just seems to be a little more, well actually a lot more fun”. Some of the businesses and stands that sell trees, like JC Farm & Greenhouses, Country Flower Farms, and Uncle Bob’s, have already had cut trees out but saw more activity.
“We do it every year”, said Governor Sam Brownback, “and, you know, usually we have to push the kids, particularly when they’re teenagers”. A few people with tree lots in Montana are offering fourth graders the chance of a lifetime this holiday season.
Iowa-grown Christmas trees are worth a million dollars annually to Iowa’s economy.
According to The National Christmas Tree Association, on average, it takes seven years for a Christmas tree to reach 6-7 feet in height.
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This is the seventh year Farmside Acres has participated in the “Trees for Troops” program, said Farmside’s Communications Manager Leigh Nannini, who noted it can be a family affair.
