Seven years before Sydneysiders set out to pick up the perfect Christmas tree, farmer Lawrence Ranson is busy drying out pine cones and settling the seeds in for a fake winter.
“They have to think it’s winter for about six weeks in the fridge or they won’t grow,” Mr Ranson said. “Then we plant them out in the nursery, grow them for a year until they’re ready to go out in the fields.”
Mr Ranson then supplies seedlings to Christmas tree farms across NSW. Christmas tree farmers such as Greg Thomas at Kenthurst then plant the seedlings to save time in the farming process.
Mr Thomas plants more than a thousand radiata pine trees every year, beginning work as soon as he closes his gates for the Christmas season.
Mr Thomas tends to the trees.Credit:Louise Kennerley
The Christmas tree stumps are removed from the ground by a machine. Then, in winter, seedlings are planted in their place.
“It’s labour-intensive. There’s not a lot of IT involved,” Mr Thomas said. “It attracts me because it’s so bloody simple.”
A 2.7 metres Christmas tree can take seven years to grow. The trees are pruned and sheared into a conical shape throughout the year.
Mr Thomas begins selling the trees in November and then closes in mid-December when all the trees are sold out.
Mr Thomas looks after the mature trees.Credit:Louise Kennerley
Mr Ranson said the bushfires and drought will create Christmas tree shortages for the next few years. “We had a really bad year with the drought and bushfires this year,” he said. “So I think the shortage is starting and it’s probably going to peak next year or the year after.”
If you have been too slow to snaffle a pine tree, Planet Ark’s head of circular economy programs Ryan Collins suggests purchasing a potted native tree.
“If you have a patch of garden big enough to plant in, we think the best choice is a potted native that can be enjoyed indoors through the festive season and then planted outside,” Mr Collins said.
“A native tree will support your local ecosystem while sequestering carbon for years, plus it will always remind you of that year’s Christmas.”
