Friday, November 8, 2019, 10:41am

Cut-your-own trees

We are excited for the 2019 Christmas Tree Cutting Season.  Spring rains lead to a great start to the season, with a pretty high success rate on all our transplants. We have put extra attention into culling extra leaders and encouraging  growth where it was needed. The result is that we have a lot of great choose-and-cut options available for the 2019 season.  

We have completed our inventory for 2019, and we’re excited to share that our average tree size and the percentage of inventoried trees have both increased.  We only inventory trees greater than 5 feet, with good conical shape and fullness on at least 3 sides. In addition, our inventory this year includes the subtraction of 4-6 inches from measured height to account for cutting. 

Following is the PRE-SEASON breakdown of cut-your-own tree sizes: 

5-6ft- 31% of inventoried trees

6-7ft- 48% of inventoried trees

7-8ft- 20% of inventoried trees

9ft+-2% of inventoried trees 

Larger trees tend to sell first, so come early in the season if that is what you’re looking for.

A word about our cultural practices: In order to provide a sustainable supply of trees year, we use our field to both market/show our inventoried trees and to develop smaller/lesser trees for market in the future. On average, only one in every 5 trees in our fields are ready for market in any given year. They are also mixed in terms of species and sizes. This helps us manage pests and keeps our fields productive year after year….. so please keep this in mind when looking for your special tree.

Fresh-Cut Frasier Firs

For those looking for bigger trees, we have Premium Grade Fresh Cut Fraser Firs available from 7′-10′. These are sourced from the same grower year after year, and we have been impressed with the consistent quality we receive each year. The wholesale Frasier Fir market has jumped up in price the last several years, so you will notice a jump in our retail price, consistent with our cost increases.

Retail Store

Our pavilion has gone through an upgrade since last season and is now enclosed for a more pleasant retail shopping experience. We have also expanded shelf space and added more product.

We will be offering new retail options for 2019 including new handmade Adirondack trees for decor, wooden reindeer, wooden snowmen, and plenty of fresh greenery options including wreaths, garland, and mailbox huggies.  We have also added additional hours during the week to allow local customers to shop our unique retail items in our unique setting.

Other upgrades are in store for this fall to improve our tree transport system and tree processing system, all in an effort to help you enjoy The Real Christmas Tree Experience here at Emmerich Tree Farm.

Hope to see you at the Farm this year!

Kurt, Karen, Evan, Schuyler, Adam and Ellen Emmerich and Friends