Quality of Christmas trees high this year

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To Ray Schmidgall, the chilly temperatures and uncertain economic times aren’t undermining the quality of one of the most important aspects of the holidays: Christmas trees.

Schmidgall, an MSU professor in the School of Hospitality Business, has owned and operated the 40-acre Star Tree Farm, 1822 Willoughby Road, just south of Okemos, for more than 15 years.

And although Schmidgall said his farm is more or less a seasonal hobby, he is happy with the quality of the trees this year in his crop.

“There’s a good crop this year,” he said. “It’s been really fun this time of year. People come in and find what they feel is a perfect tree.”

Schmidgall’s notions on crop quality are part of a statewide trend. This year’s Christmas tree crop was blessed with a combination of factors that led to quality products at tree farms across Michigan, said Pascal Nzokou, a professor of forestry and MSU Extension specialist who works with Christmas trees.

Nzokou said milder summer temperatures were conducive to quality in growing and harvesting Christmas trees. Additionally, the state experienced good rain distribution during the growing season and growers have been following scientific developments as they occur.

“Overall, everything was good,” Nzokou said. “We have been talking to growers and so far, all of them seem to be very happy.”

Michigan harvests about 1.6 million Christmas trees each year, placing it third in the nation behind Oregon and North Carolina, according to data from the United States Department of Agriculture Census of Agriculture. Nzokou said the quality of the trees not only is important for aesthetic reasons, but for economic reasons, as well.

Since the state exports a majority of its Christmas tree harvest to states such as Florida, Texas and Oklahoma, the industry typically brings in about $42 million. Overall sales, however, have a potential economic value of $100 million for the state, Nzokou said.

“Something we also have going for us is, because of the climate, we are able to grow many different species that many states cannot,” he said.

Marsha Gray, executive director of the Michigan Christmas Tree Association, said although Christmas tree growers have lost market shares in recent years because of more people buying artificial trees, sale numbers generally stay the same.

She said the quality of the trees should help, but more will be known in the way of sales after this coming weekend, which typically is the most busy weekend for Christmas tree retailers. When it comes down to it, Schmidgall said, it’s not necessarily a question of quality.

“This is a tradition. This is a family tradition,” he said. “When you come out here, you get more than a tree. You get a family experience.”

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