Media Contact:
Jeff Owen, 828/684-3562
Chad Austin, News Services, 919/515-3470

Dec. 14, 2004

Tropical Storms Didn’t Rain on N.C. Christmas Tree Industry’s Parade

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Workers in Jefferson, N.C., haul Fraser fir Christmas trees in from the field.

It may take a few years to determine what impact this year’s tropical storms will have on North Carolina’s Christmas tree industry, but those storms did little to damage this year’s crop.

“With the exception of a few growers in the western part of the state, the storms had no direct impact on this year’s harvest,” says Jeff Owen, area extension forestry specialist at North Carolina State University’s Mountain Horticultural Crops Research and Extension Center in Fletcher, N.C. “However, many growers incurred extra costs in repairing roads washed out by the storms.”

Hurricanes Frances, Ivan and Jeanne brought strong winds and heavy rains to western North Carolina in September, resulting in massive flooding throughout the region. A small percentage of trees in this year’s crop could not be harvested because of the floods. In some low-lying fields, flooding was so severe that 6- to 7-foot tall trees were completely under water at the high point of the flood, Owen said.

“The mature trees affected by flooding numbered a few thousand, not tens of thousands,” Owen said. “That’s a pretty small percentage when you’re talking about a 6 million tree harvest.”

Most older, mature trees were left unscathed, but the wind and water washed away seedlings and nursery beds at some sites. The additional wet weather may have also left younger trees susceptible to root disease.

“Sometimes hurricanes provide a positive source of moisture in the fall because often we experience droughty conditions,” Owen said. “This year we had rain from the storms on top of adequate rainfall. Smaller trees are more susceptible to root disease problems, and heavy rains could be a contributing factor for root disease. But that could take several months to show up. The long-term effect on future crops may not be known for a couple of years.”

According to the North Carolina Christmas Tree Association (NCCTA), North Carolina ranks second nationally in the number of trees harvested and first in the number of dollars made per tree. And despite other statistics that point to a recent trend of more households using artificial trees or no tree at all, sales of real, North Carolina-grown trees continue to be strong – particularly for the ever popular Fraser fir, which represents more than 90 percent of all species grown in the state, according to the NCCTA.

“Demand for the Fraser fir has outpaced supply,” Owen says. “It’s been a seller’s market. Even when the market share available to real tree producers has shrunk nationwide, demand for the North Carolina Fraser fir has been strong.

“North Carolina Christmas tree growers have sold out of Fraser fir each season for the last several years. We like to think that this strong market reflects both the high quality of Fraser fir and the efforts of the NCCTA to promote the North Carolina Fraser fir.”

Consumers could expect to pay anywhere from $6 to $10 per foot for a tree this year, Owen said. Those figures would put the cost of a 6- or 7-foot tree between $35 and $70, or about the same price as last year.

Owen and other extension agents recently canvassed different parts of the state and nation to examine this year’s crop of trees. Owen rated the overall quality of this year’s crop as “excellent” and said retailers are taking positive steps to keep trees fresh for consumers.

Owen estimates that between 5 and 6 million trees have been harvested in North Carolina this year at an estimated value of more than $100 million.

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