Christmas tree farm thrives despite changes in trees, trends, weather

The drive to Starr Pines Christmas Tree Farm ends as you cross a hill on a white gravel road near Boonville. At the top of the hill, patches of forest and dried fields give way to dozens of short, neatly spaced pines. They look like sentries guarding a gate.

The road is quiet on weekdays - the only other travelers are Amish farmers in their distinctive straw hats, clutching blankets tightly around their shoulders in one hand and gripping horse whips with the other as they ride by in carts.

Inside the gate, Starr Pines owner Wayne Harmon and his daughter, Dixie, who is visiting from Colorado to help during the holiday season, are working in a converted barn.

Lit by red Christmas lights, it's where customers pay for the trees they cut themselves, sip apple cider and stock up on ornaments and fudge.

Harmon has been running the farm since 1986. Over the decades, he has seen the Christmas tree business evolve in ways that reveal changes in the world, from weather to demographics – all reflected in one of the most personal and beloved traditions of Christmas.

Changing traditions

The National Christmas Tree Association counts about 15,000 Christmas tree farms in the United States, and 25 million to 30 million trees are sold every year. Close to 100,000 people are employed full or part time in the industry.

One of the changes Harmon said he has noticed in recent years is tree preference. The majority of his trees are Scotch pines, which grow easily in Missouri and are the most commonly used Christmas trees in the region.

But Harmon began growing firs this year after more customers began requesting them. They’re not mature yet, Harmon said, but he hopes to start offering them next year or the year after.

“People that are from the East and the Great Northwest where there are a lot of firs are used to firs, so they expect us to have firs,” he said.

Harmon said he believes the growth in popularity is due to people from those areas moving to other parts of the country, as well as farmers in the East shipping their fir trees to be sold elsewhere. People go looking for the type of tree they grew up with when they start shopping for their own homes, he said.

According to the Agricultural Marketing Resource Center, the four best-selling Christmas tree species are all firs, with the Scotch pines trailing in fifth place.

Though Harmon said firs don’t naturally grow well in Missouri’s drier climate, he has set up irrigation systems in the fields to meet the increased demand.

Harmon has also noticed a trend that fits a growing national demand for organic plants and food. He has moved away from using pesticides on his trees because customers began to ask for trees that had never been sprayed.

Yet, bagworms remain a persistent issue. The worms form long cocoons that hang off tree branches, then eat the needles on the trees after they hatch. In the absence of sprays, Harmon must remove the creatures by hand and destroy them.

With thousands of trees on the farm, this can be a time-consuming and labor-intensive process. But Harmon said spraying is also expensive, and the trade-off of time versus money makes it worthwhile.

Choosing a tree

A young couple, Amy and Blake Nelson, drive up to the farm gate and park in front of Harmon’s house. He welcomes them and gives them the necessary tools, pointing them in the direction of the fields with mature trees. About 15 minutes later, they return, dragging their selection behind them, a full-figured pine tree, not too tall.

Harmon puts the tree in a small red machine that shakes it violently up and down for several seconds, dislodging the loose needles that can sometimes fall off natural trees. Falling needles can drive people to Harmon’s biggest competition - artificial trees.

The mess and the perception that it is wasteful to harvest a tree to display just once a year have prompted a trend away from real trees. But some groups now say real trees are a more environmentally friendly option because artificial trees, largely built from PVC in China, have a higher carbon footprint and may be manufactured in conditions with lower environmental standards.

Harmon measures the Nelsons' tree at 5 feet and puts the tree in a baler, a machine that secures the branches with netting so the couple can take it home. Amy, a nurse, said she and her husband have been cutting their own Christmas trees for the past four years and have made it one of their first holiday traditions.

Growing up in San Diego and Kansas City, she said getting to spend time on a farm is a novelty.

“This is about as outdoorsy as we get,” she said.

Weather and economics

Through the years, Starr Pines has dealt with changes in both weather and the economy. In 2012, Missouri was at the epicenter of a historic drought lasting from spring to late summer and stretching from Utah to Indiana.

There was no significant relief in the form of widespread rainfall until August. Harmon said they lost much of their crop that year, and the trees take seven to 10 years to mature.

Economic conditions also impacted the industry over the past decade. The Wall Street Journal reported that during the Great Recession, farmers reduced their planting because they had been selling fewer live trees. Since Christmas trees take around seven to 10 years to mature, the crop this year has been impacted by those global economic conditions from a decade ago.

Weather and economics have led many growers to exit the business. Data from the National Agricultural Statistics Service says the number of Christmas tree farms across the country is falling and will continue to decline in the next decade.

Harmon said he has seen evidence of this trend in mid-Missouri, recalling that when he started the business, there were perhaps six other farms in the area, but now there are only two or three.

The situation has resulted in higher prices for the growers who have stayed in the industry. Harmon said he has seen his business grow steadily over the years. He has been able to transition from selling most of his trees wholesale to operating a retail business exclusively.

The demand for trees that customers can cut themselves has remained strong, and growing fewer trees gives Harmon more free time as he gets older.

He now focuses on providing an “on the farm experience” for families like the Nelsons.

“When they cut the tree here,” Harmon said of his customers, “they know it was growing, so it’s got life in it.”

The farm will remain open until night falls on Christmas Eve.