Decade Old Recession Cause For Tree Shortage

Photo Credit: Massachusetts Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs (EEA)

STOW, MA (WBZ-AM) -- At the Mistletoe Christmas Tree Farm in Stow, there is no problem getting a Christmas Tree.

"So we have not noticed  with our suppliers -- any shortage of trees"

Mark Harnet owns the farm and he says expects to sell quite a few trees this season. 

"Well, we'll sell between 1,500 and 2,000 trees in the given year... it really depends on the weather," he said.   

"That's the number one criteria, whether or not people want to come out to a farm and spend an hour getting some hot cocoa, having some candy canes, buying a couple of wreathes and and walking into the fields."

Harnet says the issue for some tree supplies being low this year is pretty simple -- the economics of a nearly a decade ago.

"During the recession, they would stop planting trees.  It takes between 8 to 11 years to grow and so if you stop planting trees now  then in 8 or 9 years, you're really not going to have trees...you can't really rush growing trees or at least a quality tree. It's not like a grape that comes back every year"  he said.

Harnet says several local cut your own tree farms across the state have gone out of business in the past few years, selling their land to developers -- putting a higher demand on trees to be cut in person. 

WBZ NewsRadio1030's Ben Parker reports.


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