Christmas Trees and Holiday Traditions

The holidays are rife with both memories and family traditions. When I first started my own family my father advised me to take my most treasured youthful memories and continue them annually making each a tradition. "And don't be afraid to allow your traditions to evolve" he insisted.

There is a big difference between a memory and a tradition. I remember as a child spending winter weekends and evenings in the field (now a parking lot) across from Divine Providence Hospital selling Christmas Trees as a fundraiser for the hospital. Families would come by the car load and wander through the rows of trees each with a different vision of the perfect tree.

I'll never forget suffering through the snow in my boots, the bitter wind, and numb fingers while holding up tree after tree for all the people who couldn't make up their mind. I also remember more fondly going with my father to a Christmas Tree Farm in Sylvan Dell where we selected a tree, cut it down and brought it home on top of the family station wagon. How much easier that was! And so a tradition was born.

As an adult, I've always found it more rewarding (and comfortable) to pre-select a tree while it's still standing and the weather is warmer, if only by a few weeks. Most importantly, I cut the tree when I'm ready to put it up. I know it's freshly cut and will last longer.

For the past decade my tradition has been to spend the Sunday after Thanksgiving selecting a Christmas Tree. Every year we make the short journey to Pauling's Tree Farm outside Hughesville where we select a tree, tag it with our name and then visit the shop in the barn to select a new ornament for our new tree, pick out a fresh wreath for the front door, and enjoy a little free spiced cider for me and hot chocolate for the younger set. Pauling's features acres of trees of virtually every variety priced very reasonably (see also editor's comments this week). Every year we run into the same friends and neighbors at Pauling's so it must be their tradition too.

Over the course of the next week, I'll climb to the attic, retrieve the decorations and help decorate the house (under strict supervision of course). Then when the house is ready, I'll return to Pauling's on a Saturday or Sunday with Evan, my fellow lumberjack to cut down our tree. Pauling's will trim and flatten the trunk and drill it to fit my tree stand before wrapping it in a net of twine and loading it into my small SUV. When we get home we'll easily carry the 6 foot plus tree into the family room, place it on the stand and cut the twine and spin the tree until it's positioned perfectly (according to the supervisor). Next I unpack all the ornaments, including those I received as gifts from family members over the years and that special ornament I buy each year.

Then comes the best part of the tradition. When all is ready, I build a fire in the fireplace, pour a glass of wine and watch as mother and son carefully place a memory from each year onto the tree, each in it's special place. We reminisce briefly about each year, special occasion, or place we visited that is represented by an ornament. As I watch this last stage of "the tree tradition" unfold, it never fails to hit me. Every year I realize that even if there were no gifts for under the tree, I am, as George Bailey said in It's A Wonderful Life, the luckiest man in the world. Because I have wonderful people in my life, and that's all anyone should ever need.

MORE ABOUT PAULING'S

Trees range from 3 feet to 10 feet and are priced from $18 to $39 based on variety (not by size). Take route 220 North to Hughesville then route 118 East to the old go-cart track, turn left and follow the signs. Larry Pauling, formerly a craftsman for James Meyers Studios also offers a great selection of beautiful handmade jewelry.

MORE ABOUT CHRISTMAS TREES

The most popular trees in the Susquehanna Valley according to the National Christmas Tree Growers Association are:

• WHITE PINE: The largest pine in the U.S., the White Pine has soft, flexible needles and is bluish-green in color. Needles are 2 ½ - 5 in. long. White Pine’s have good needle retention, but have little aroma. They aren't recommended for heavy ornaments.
• WHITE SPRUCE: The White Spruce is excellent for ornaments; it’s short, stiff needles are ½ - 3/4 in. long and have a blunt tip. They are bluish-green - green in color, but have a bad aroma when needles are crushed. They have excellent foliage color and have a good, natural shape. The needle retention is better in a White Spruce than it is among other spruces.
• FRASER FIR: The Fraser fir branches turn slightly upward. They have good form and needle-retention. They are dark blue-green in color. They have a pleasant scent, and excellent shipping characteristics as well.
• COLORADO BLUE SPRUCE: Often used for stuffing pine-pillows, these sharp needles are 1 - 1 ½ in. in length. This species is bluish-gray in color and has a bad odor when needles are crushed. This Christmas Tree has good symmetrical form and has an attractive blue foliage. It also has good needle retention.
• CONCOLOR FIR: These small, narrow needles are around 1 - 1 ½ in. in length and occur in rows. They have good foliage color, good needle retention, and a pleasing shape and aroma.
• DOUGLAS FIR: These soft needles are dark green - blue green in color and are approximately 1 - 1 ½ in. in length. The douglas fir needles radiate in all directions from the branch. When crushed, these needles have a sweet fragrance. They are one of the top major Christmas tree species in the U.S.
• BALSAM FIR: These needles are 3/4 - 1 ½ in. in length and last a very long time. This tree has a dark-green appearance and retains its pleasing fragrance throughout the Christmas season.
• SCOTCH PINE: Approximately 1 in. in length, these needles don’t even fall when they’re dry, providing excellent needle retention. The color is a bright green. The most common Christmas tree in the U.S., the scotch pine has an excellent survival rate, is easy to replant, has great keepability and will remain fresh throughout the holiday season.