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Christmas trees

Started by coxy, December 11, 2017, 07:13:26 AM

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coxy

cant believe how much there getting for them  I told the guy yesterday I don't get that much for a 20in spruce log  ;D

Don P

The crews just left here, tractors, semis, etc. They are heading for the FL strawberry fields, same farm owners, then back here in spring for tree planting, setting out strawberries that will be transplanted down there, planting pumpkins and shearing Christmas trees. Pretty slick, they figured out how to keep the workforce busy year round. The local store just emptied out till they return. At the height of harvest it's stand back, the pickup trucks and trailers are rolling out of the fields with a couple of hundred baled trees per trailer heading for the packing yards. I've been standing at a corner and nearly hit by a tree rolling off one of those, Merry Christmas  :D

PA_Walnut

Visited a tree farm right over the mountain from my place. $32 for a large (over 5') and $24 for smaller.   ;D
Previous years I've seen 3x that from temp retailers.

I own my own small piece of the world on an 8 acre plot on the side of a mountain with walnut, hickory, ash and spruce.
LT40HD Wide 35HP Diesel
Peterson Dedicated Wide Slabber
Kubota M62 Tractor/Backhoe
WoodMizer KD250 Kiln
Northland 800 Kiln

WDH

I paid $50 for a beautiful 6' frasier fir.  I buy my Christmas trees from an old guy that runs a little stand selling some produce and I like giving him business because he is trying to scrape out a living.  Just an old local guy, kinda like me.  I could have bought one at the local Ace Hardware for $38, or one from Lowes for $45.  But that is not the point.  It suits me to support a local guy rather than the Giant Retailers. 
Woodmizer LT40HDD35, John Deere 2155, Kubota M5-111, Kubota L2501, Nyle L53 Dehumidification Kiln, and a passion for all things with leafs, twigs, and bark.  hamsleyhardwood.com

runmca

we usually visit the local tree farm and cut our own, price increased to $55. This year we decided to buy a live spruce that we'll plant after Christmas.

chevytaHOE5674

I went out in the corner of the cow pasture and cut a white spruce, it isn't the best looking tree but it was free and once decorated it looks as nice as any IMO.

Kbeitz

A lot of people don't realize what it takes to raise a Christmas tree.
I grew up on my Dads tree farm. I take 12-15 years to grow a tree
from a 3-4 year old transplant. All weeds need cut every year.
Spraying needs done when they get to size and it'e all hard work.



 
Collector and builder of many things.
Love machine shop work
and Wood work shop work
And now a saw mill work

51cub

I can see both sides. My family sold Christmas trees when I was young. In the mid 1960s, we were selling them for $1 a ft. I see the price now, it does seem like alot until I remember the time put into them
I believe in the hereafter, because every time I take two steps into the tool crib to get something I wonder " what did I come in here after"

If nothing else I'm always a good last resort or the guy to hold up as a bad example

florida

With my blessing, my wife bought a fairly expensive artificial tree year before last at a huge discount. I said I'd never do it but the hassle factor of getting, putting up and taking down of a real tree finally wore me out. I get the fake tree out of the attic, set it on the stand and go to the woods. Works for me!
General contractor and carpenter for 50 years.
Retired now!

coxy

we had fake trees for a long time but I like the smell of a real one  maybe I can find some kind of a spray  :D  my aunt and uncle always had a hemlock for there tree put a different smell in the house and the needles seemed to last longer before they fell off  ???

thecfarm

At least the trees are made in America.
Model 6020-20hp Manual Thomas bandsaw,TC40A 4wd 40 hp New Holland tractor, 450 Norse Winch, Heatmor 400 OWB,YCC 1978-79

4x4American

My one neighbor sells em for $12/tree any size and the other neighbor sells em for $10/tree any size.  That's the kinda markets we have around here, and I guarantee some ppl still complain thats too high, the jb's.
Boy, back in my day..

Hilltop366

$20 at the store just around the corner some places are $35, my daughter and I always go in the woods behind the house to get a 3 or 4 foot one for her, time spent with her... priceless.

moosehunter

I used to help at my in laws tree farm this time of year.  Really enjoyed helping families get their tree , expecially the kids. One year some friends had an exchange st from Brazil,  we told him he needed a "Christmas Tree Hunting License " before he could cut down a tree.  Had it planned ahead of time so mom in law just happened to have a "foriegn citizen Christmas Tree Hunting license " form.  Had him fill it out then let him cut the tree.
Ya, it might have been mean but we had a lot of fun with it!
"And the days that I keep my gratitude
Higher than my expectations
Well, I have really good days".    Ray Wylie Hubbard

Chuck White

When I was stationed in Anchorage, Alaska we used to buy our Christmas trees from a guy who brought them in from Minnesota by the tractor trailer load!

We bought from him from 85-88 and got them for around $40.00 each year!
~Chuck~  Cooks Cat Claw sharpener and single tooth setter.  2018 Chevy Silverado and 2021 Subaru Ascent.
With basic mechanical skills and the ability to read you can maintain a Woodmizer  LT40!

coxy

Quote from: thecfarm on December 11, 2017, 09:00:03 PM
At least the trees are made in America.
how do you know for shur they may have been imports when little :D :D

samandothers

As a kid at home we would go and cut a cedar for our Christmas tree.  Sure did smell good! Boy they were prickly to decorate!

Can white pines be trimmed (pruned) to fill out (fuller look) as a Christmas tree?

Don P

Sure. Most of what you are seeing up here is fraser fir and then white pines get tipped for wreaths and roping but in lowlier areas that can't grow a fraser fir, white pines are pretty common. 30 years ago they said you couldn't grow a fraser below 3500 ft, they are growing them a thousand feet lower now.

Chuck White

Far as I'm concerned, any conifer can be a Christmas Tree, first off, you have to believe then you have to get the tree into the house and decorated!

The spirit of Christmas is EVERYTHING!
~Chuck~  Cooks Cat Claw sharpener and single tooth setter.  2018 Chevy Silverado and 2021 Subaru Ascent.
With basic mechanical skills and the ability to read you can maintain a Woodmizer  LT40!

4x4American

Chuck that bewilders me!  First off, you would think that with all the trees in Alaska they'd be able to scrounge up some Christmas trees..and secondly, with a quick google maps search it says its a 53 hour drive to minnesota...how does that work!?  Only thing I can think of is the guy must've had a pretty dang good backhaul.
Boy, back in my day..

Chuck White

Not sure if he had a backhaul or not, I just know the trailer was jam-packed full of Christmas trees!

The Spruce in Alaska is mostly Black Spruce and they don't have much of a shape as far as Christmas trees go, and not very many limbs!

Most (if you did cut one) would require cutting a 35-40 foot tall tree just so you could get the top of it!
~Chuck~  Cooks Cat Claw sharpener and single tooth setter.  2018 Chevy Silverado and 2021 Subaru Ascent.
With basic mechanical skills and the ability to read you can maintain a Woodmizer  LT40!

sprucebunny

And that's exactly what they do to bl. spruce in Minnesota ! A friend in MN builds/rebuilds tracked machines and he set up 2 used Muskegs with towers so they could top black spruce for Christmas trees.

My land has way too much balsam so I do some thinning this time of year. Make a few wreaths...big fat fluffy ones. I have 2 12 foot trees. One on the porch and one wired to something in the driveway....You won't have enough branches to hang all 438 ornaments but they look good with lights.
MS193, MS192 and an 026  Weeding and Thinning. Gilbert Champion sawmill

Don P

When I was working in the furniture shop one of the guys came in with 3 Charlie Brown trees and wanted us to set up one in the breakroom. With a drill and loppers we made one very full tree  :D

BradMarks

Not a lot of snow this year so I was able to make it to the "spruce patch". For over 30 yrs been going to the same place when I can. Tree's keep growing, selection gets tougher. $5 Forest Service permit, $20 bucks in gas, afternoon outdoors, as they say, priceless.

Kbeitz

Some field shots....



 



 



 



 
Collector and builder of many things.
Love machine shop work
and Wood work shop work
And now a saw mill work

starmac

4X4, backhauls out of Alaska that pay for the fuel are somewhat rare except during fishing season. That said a load of trees probably paid him 14,000 or better, which would have been pretty good money in the 80's.
Old LT40HD, old log truck, old MM forklift, and several huskies.

Corley5

  We haven't had a real tree in a few years now.  This year's is our forth artificial tree and the first season for our third pre-lit model.  Dee keeps track of such things ;) ;D  We get a couple three seasons or so out of them before a part of the tree fails to light anymore.  We fill the spot with a strand of lights to get through and buy a new tree a few days after Christmas at Wal-Mart when a $100.00 tree can be had for $25.00  ;) ;D 
Burnt Gunpowder is the Smell Of Freedom

Jeff

We had to go to artificial years ago due to allergies.
Just call me the midget doctor.
Forestry Forum Founder and Chief Cook and Bottle Washer.

Commercial circle sawmill sawyer in a past life for 25yrs.
Ezekiel 22:30

thecfarm

I really do enjoy looking for a tree with the wife.
But...............................
Same story for 10 years.
We go to a Christmas tree farm and look at trees. And I do mean trees. Did I say trees?? I bet we spend an hour there. Which does not bother me at all. Which is true. I like being outside,looking at trees.And being with my wife. Ok,so after looking for an hour she has it all narrowed down. She points off towards the South East of an acre of Christmas trees and says,I want the one that we looked at over there. So back track we do. Oh no,not that one,she says and points off towards the North West.Off we go to the said direction. Only to have her point in another direction. Off we go on another trek across the field that seems to be growing in size. The "pecfect" tree can not be found that was found about a ½ hour ago. Even though she knows it's just around the cornor. So off we go looking for another perfect tree. She looks and looks and looks some more. Finally she finds the one that she wants to put in our home and decorate it with lights and even a few things made my the kids when they was young. Out comes the saw that I have carried 10 miles and down comes the tree. The saw gets handed to the one that has done the choicing. I drag the tree down to where it is wrapped nice and tight for it's ride to a new home. After I remove The Tree from out 4 wheel vechile,I carefully measure the space from the floor to the ceiling and leaving enough room for the Angel on top of the tree out comes the saw from the garage and the tree gets even shorter. Than after the base is found and make sure all the long bolts that will hold the tree tall and true are checked to make sure they will do thier job the wonderful Christmas Tree is stood up proud and tall. After a few turns of the special bolts the tree is straight. Than the one that I have spent many a miles a walking through a field full of tree,inspects it and says,If I would of seen that spot I would not of got the tree.
And that is why after the same thing that has happen for 10 years is why we have a fake tree. She can bend and mold the limbs the way she wants
Model 6020-20hp Manual Thomas bandsaw,TC40A 4wd 40 hp New Holland tractor, 450 Norse Winch, Heatmor 400 OWB,YCC 1978-79

starmac

Back in the 70's we would cut Christmas trees off the ranch and sell them. It was actually pretty good money.
I took off one day and went to Colorado to see my then girlfriend, now wife. Anyway when I got back I noticed when Joe needed a beer, one of the other guys would get him off of the wood stove and serve him. There was 4 of us staying there and we did not wait on each other as a rule.

I ask what was up with that, it turned out Joe was riding on top of a pickup load of trees, loaded on top of a couple of fresh inches of snow. When it turned up a steep part of the log road, the whole load slid out. Trees like this are real springy, so when they hit they acted like a spring and threw him tight over the cliff. The guy driving the pickup didn't notice and kept going, another friend was following in a jeep and stopped, it turned out that he lucked out and a tree that was pushed over the edge when the road was built had hung up and he landed across the trunk, so only fell about 10 feet, Levi through him a rope and drug him back up with the jeep. he wasn't actually hurt but was stove up enough that we did kind of wait on him for a day or two. lol
Old LT40HD, old log truck, old MM forklift, and several huskies.

sprucebunny

Since I only have natural trees, I've done like Don P's friends and made them fuller with a drill and some trimmings. Took it to the limit one year and made the trunk out of a 4x4 with lots of holes. Not one of the best trees....  :D
MS193, MS192 and an 026  Weeding and Thinning. Gilbert Champion sawmill

dgdrls

Quote from: Kbeitz on December 15, 2017, 09:50:44 PM
Some field shots....



 



 



 



 

Those photo's remind me of the fields north of Indiana PA where Musser Nursery is,
Very nice, 

D

samandothers

Kbeitz
Nice looking Christmas trees.  I notice what appears to be a nicely trimmed and full white pine!

Kbeitz

Quote from: samandothers on December 17, 2017, 10:06:55 AM
Kbeitz
Nice looking Christmas trees.  I notice what appears to be a nicely trimmed and full white pine!

We had fields full of white pine...
My Dad started out with Scotch pine.
I don't think anyone uses them anymore.
Now it's Douglas, fraser fir, concolor and spruce in our area.
Collector and builder of many things.
Love machine shop work
and Wood work shop work
And now a saw mill work

thecfarm

The few places that I have seen over the years,do not sell white pine.
All them trees look mighty good.
Model 6020-20hp Manual Thomas bandsaw,TC40A 4wd 40 hp New Holland tractor, 450 Norse Winch, Heatmor 400 OWB,YCC 1978-79

moosehunter

When I was 16 or 17 I went with some neighbors to get a tree for them, a couple about 30 yrs old. For some reason they let me drive home. They had a way cool FJ40 Land cruiser . We tied the tree on top. They also had a carport that was about 18 inches taller than the Land Cruiser. You guessed it,  i drove right in. That tree was pretty hard to pull out and had two flat sides when we got it set up.
Oddly enough,  they took me the next year, just didn't let me drive home!
mh
"And the days that I keep my gratitude
Higher than my expectations
Well, I have really good days".    Ray Wylie Hubbard

coxy

 :D :D do you blame them  :)

coalsmok

I got hired to trim some Christmas trees one year. They were planted on a patch of ground you could barely stand on and I will never forget the amount of sap on me at the end of every day. When I finished they told me to come back at Christmas time and get a tree as a bonus.  When mom was done with that tree I enjoyed watching it burn.

Kbeitz

Nothing like trimming a tall Christmas tree on top of a step ladder
and hitting a hornets nest... I'll never forget those days...



 



 
Collector and builder of many things.
Love machine shop work
and Wood work shop work
And now a saw mill work

cbla

25$ for a 8ft tree. I went to a u cut close to my camp.

Don P

QuoteMy Dad started out with Scotch pine.
I don't think anyone uses them anymore.
We were wondering about that the other day. That was the typical tree from my Dad's folks farm growing up. I know they tried to introduce them during the CCC days as a timber tree and they didn't work. They grew with poor form over here. I wonder if that is how they came to be used for a Christmas tree, cutting them out of plantations or if they were planted at the time for Christmas trees?

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