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There is a whole industry that revolves around the production of trees for Christmas. All prairie Christmas trees are grown on family farms and are an important part of their family businesses. This is a great option for consumers for not only do you purchase the freshest tree possible but there are still some locations where you can venture out to the farm to choose and cut a tree. It's an outing that will make great memories.

Be aware there is a shortage of trees so do your research and call ahead before venturing out. For more information on the prairie Christmas tree industry check out the PCTGA who are committed to facilitating the improvement and stabilization of production, distribution and marketing of quality Christmas trees and other related products on the prairies. Their trees are available at select tree lots in both Saskatoon and Regina.

Did you know that it takes seven to 14 years for a tree to reach marketable size? Ray Gaudet of Gaudet Trees says on the prairies a tree needs to grow to four or five feet before they really get growing and put on a foot of growth per year. It takes about 10 years to grow a tree from seed to about chest height. During that time, there is a lot of labour that goes into the growth of each and every tree. Ray says in order to grow a quality Christmas tree you need to touch each and every tree every year. Along with the regular care that goes into growing any plant, it is also necessary to do pruning and shaping to ensure you will get the perfect tree to grace your home over the holidays.

Gaudet Trees have been a grower and broker since the late 1980s. Starting out in a family production business means everyone works hard and you plant and keep planting and feel that you can do it. As the years go by, if you are running any type of small horticultural business, you begin to wonder what life might be without the workload that seems to keep getting more difficult with each year that passes. Today, small businesses are competing directly with large scale businesses that have the capacity to do all facets of the “work” of the business with more people and more money. Small businesses do not have human resources, administrative or marketing departments so there are limited funds and manpower to operate the day-to-day aspects of the business.

When coronavirus hit, and people could make some money by staying at home, the labour shortages across the country got worse. Environmental issues like drought and unseasonably late frosts also have hit this industry hard as you lose at least a year of production each and every time Mother Nature does not give the best scenarios for growth. Losing a year of production is huge for a horticultural small business and recovery from that loss takes much more than a year.

These family farms are not getting more plentiful. Despite the evidence of a better quality of life living in rural areas, eating food produced by you and contributing to the health of the environment, these businesses are disappearing. Choosing to have a real Christmas tree is not a negative thing. It is an opportunity for you to be involved in a truly sustainable industry.

While the tree is growing, it will cycle carbon dioxide to oxygen as do all green plants. The trees are biodegradable and once the holiday season is over, your tree can be recycled and become essential organic matter. With increasing events reflecting the devastating effects of climate change, we all need to be working together towards a more sustainable future.

Using the words of Ray Gaudet, “Enjoy your life and all the moments. In fact, enjoy more moments with your family and your friends.”

Hanbidge is the lead horticulturist with Orchid Horticulture. Find us at ; by email at [email protected]; on Facebook @orchidhort and on instagram at #orchidhort.

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