By Clint Thompson
It is never too early to start preparing for the Christmas holidays; whether you’re a home owner or a Christmas tree producer.
According to Jeremy Pickens, Alabama assistant Extension professor in horticulture at Auburn University, Christmas tree farmers are in the final stages of preparation with farms expected to be flooded with visitors in the upcoming weeks.
“Getting into the fall, their big thing is really getting the farm cleaned up and ready to put on a show. You’ve got a handful of weeks where all of your eggs are in one basket. I think this time of year their main concern is getting the farm in good shape and getting the trees cleaned up and grass and weeds cut and under control,” Pickens said. “Some of them that do the agritourism, there’s a lot of setup involved. They have some of the large games and bouncy house type of things, petting zoos; just getting all of that set up.
“It used to be the weekend after Thanksgiving. Now it’s more and more earlier, the weekend before Thanksgiving.”
This year’s Christmas trees have grown in challenging weather conditions. Drought-like conditions have encompassed the region since August. According to the Oct. 30 release of the U.S. Drought Monitor, all of central and southern Alabama is experiencing some level of drought, with extreme drought being reported in the western region of the state.
However, the extended dry spell appears to not have had an adverse effect on Christmas tree production in the state.
“I don’t anticipate there being any problems at any of our farms. I think the folks that I’ve talked to have had a pretty good year so far,” Pickens said.