Another ‘lean’ year for Christmas trees at Hamilton-area farms

Dressed in seasonal red plaid, a Rockton Christmas tree farmer walked neat rows of evergreens - layered shades of green, from light to deep to near-blue - careful not to step on the delicate seedlings protruding ankle-height from the soil.

Ten years ago, we'd be open every day until Christmas," said Eric Rinas, co-owner of Rinas Christmas Trees.

Last year, the farm sold out the first weekend in December.

This year we have a few more trees, so I hope we can go a little longer," he said. Like many, the farm opens the last weekend in November.

This year is destined to be like last for Christmas trees in Ontario.

We expect that tree farmers will be closed early, we expect that we will sell all the trees that we have an opportunity to sell," said Shirley Brennan, the executive director of the Canadian Christmas Trees Association.

With parties and gatherings cancelled amid the COVID-19 pandemic, Christmas trees have been a vital source of holiday cheer for many, driving demand and drawing buyers earlier in the season.

But the numbers show the industry's growth can't be attributed to COVID alone. The value of the industry in Canada has skyrocketed since 2015 - growth that wasn't forecasted," Brennan said.

To have such a demand has just been just kind of throwing everybody for a loop," she said.

It's especially challenging for an industry to adapt when its main commodity has an eight- to 12-year growth cycle - a cycle repeatedly interrupted by erratic weather largely attributed to climate change.

Any farmer needs Mother Nature as their silent partner, but she doesn't always co-operate with us," Brennan said.

Ongoing floods and summer fires that have ravaged the West Coast have contributed to shortages locally and countrywide. Some of the association's tree farms are in areas currently flooded.

A changing demographic - both among sellers and buyers - may also be a factor.

Our tree farmers are older and their succession plans are not including someone taking over the farm," she said, adding that all are family run.

Brennan said there are about 100 fewer farms in the province than there were 10 years ago.

We have seen in Ontario those numbers drop," she said, adding that a half-dozen new members have joined the association in the last couple of years.

Then we see the younger generation that really do value the environment and want the natural product," she said.

Ikea, which typically sell pre-cut trees in their parking lots, announced it would not be selling trees this year.

Unfortunately, live Christmas trees will not be available to purchase at Ikea Canada stores this holiday season," reads a statement on the Burlington store's website. We know live trees have been a much-loved tradition for Ikea and our customers over many years and we sincerely apologize."

In a statement on its website, Watson Christmas Trees owner Jim Watson said the farm is still experiencing a tree shortage" and will not be offering choose-and-cut trees from its field.

This year we are not opening the fields for our cut-your-own operations, however we have our usual selection of pre-cut Christmas trees," wrote Watson.

Last year, the farm sold out of trees, both pre-cut and choose-and-cut, less than two weeks after opening.

Appointments for choose-and-cut trees at Merry Farms in Lynden were booked by mid-November.

More dates will be added to the reservation system if tree inventory and selection permits," reads a message on the farm's website.

Rinas said their farm isn't taking appointments, but recommends tree-seekers get out early and expect to pay more for trees this year.

A holiday medley played on a speaker in the background on a late-November Saturday. Velvet bows adorned trees in the yard and tinsel hung from rooflines. The farm doesn't open to the general public until Friday, but photographers have been using the farm for family portraits in the months leading up to opening day.

Wagon rides and hot drinks in the farm's warm-up shelter are off the menu for the second year in a row amid the ongoing pandemic. Masks are required in parking lots and the tree-baling area.

Despite shorter seasons and COVID measures, Christmas is in the air at this tree farm - in some ways, it is all year-round. Few trees are perfectly pyramid-shaped and plump on their own.

Visiting with every tree and shaping it does take time," he said, adding that most of that work happens in July.

Brennan reminds buyers that just because there are trees in the field, doesn't mean they are for sale.

When they drive by a tree farm and they see the trees, they think, Well, why is it closed?'" she said. If we were to cut every mature tree or allow people to come in and cut to the smaller trees, then they're eliminating part of their stock for the following year or the year after that."

On average, a farmer cuts just 25 to 30 per cent of their stock each season in order to maintain supply.

We figure it's going to be probably a couple of more lean years," she said.

Kate McCullough is a Hamilton-based reporter covering education at The Spectator. Reach her via email: kmccullough@thespec.com