Glenda Pereira: 00:01
Welcome to the Maine Farmcast. This is your host, Dr. Glenda Pereira, an assistant professor at the University of Maine and the dairy specialist for the University of Maine Cooperative Extension. This episode is being released on Christmas Eve. So if you are a listener that celebrates, we are going to talk with one of our Christmas tree specialists and experts in the state of Maine, Brett Johnson.
Glenda Pereira: 00:28
But before Brett introduces himself, I just wanted to say, if you celebrate, Merry Christmas, and happy holidays to everybody else. So Brett, can you just give us your brief title? Because you wear many hats.
Brett Johnson: 00:43
Thank you, Glenda. Yeah, so I’m Brett Johnson. I’m an Assistant Extension Professor with the University of Maine Cooperative Extension. And I’m also a sustainable agriculture educator based in the Mid Coast Region, serving Waldo, Knox, and Lincoln Counties. And I’m also a farm business management educator with a statewide role with Cooperative Extension.
Glenda Pereira: 01:05
Yeah. And as part of the many hats that you wear, you work quite a bit in concert with the Maine Christmas Tree Association. And that’s a very active group here in the state of Maine. And as I mentioned to you, I was once at the Ag Trade Show. In the room, we had a session in the room next to the MCTA, and there were so many people attending.
Glenda Pereira: 01:28
And I just couldn’t believe the amount of folks that were participating that day in their programming. So Christmas trees are a big part of Maine’s economy. So tell us more about some of the history of the Christmas tree here in the state of Maine.
Brett Johnson: 01:45
Yeah. So the Christmas tree in the state of Maine, when we talk about Christmas trees, we’re primarily talking about balsam fir, which is a species that’s native to the forests of Maine and the Northeast more broadly. And there are quite a few different production systems that have taken place over the decades in Maine. Essentially, the way that most of the Christmas trees are managed here today is they are grown more as a horticultural crop. They’re planted in straight lines.
Brett Johnson: 02:24
They’re managed in a lot of the same ways that you would manage any other perennial horticultural crop. Another thing that’s really unique about Christmas trees, and again, they sort of have one foot in forestry and one foot in commercial horticulture, is this need to shear a Christmas tree. So when I work with folks, with commercial growers, we’re usually thinking about production systems that are going to require seven to ten years of input to get that tree to market. And with balsam fir, fortunately, with it being a native plant species, it’s not subject to huge issues with pests and diseases, but there are a handful of issues that can reduce the marketability and also can lead to tree loss even several years after the tree has been planted. So when I started with the University of Maine, before moving into my current role, I was a sustainable agriculture and horticulture educator based in the Somerset County office.
Brett Johnson: 03:38
Being a new educator, this would have been July 2022, I was surveying sort of the potential options of work that I could be involved in and the impact that I might be able to have, and thinking a lot about what are the areas that are already being very well supported across the state. I got a little bit of advice from a mentor of mine, my graduate advisor. He said, “Make yourself useful and they’ll keep you around.” So I was thinking also about just some experiences that I had had going on to a Christmas tree farm in Maine. Each year that my wife and daughter and I have lived in Maine, we’ve always gone out to a local farm.
Brett Johnson: 04:30
Typically, we like to go to a different farm each year because every experience is unique, and it gave me a major appreciation for what the enterprise looks like, what it’s like to be a consumer of a real Maine-grown Christmas tree, and appreciate the light and the warmth and the feeling of good cheer that it brings to you during what can be a pretty challenging time for folks, with the day length being so short here in this part of the country.
Glenda Pereira: 05:04
There’s nothing better. Yes. There’s nothing better than getting home and plugging in your tree, or if you have an automatic sensor or leave it on all the time. Yeah, it brings so much cheer to your home.
Brett Johnson: 05:15
And actually, enough, I feel like I’ve sort of won a competition in some ways for having the longest Christmas tree in terms of being able to keep it out because I always keep it really well watered.
Glenda Pereira: 05:33
Tell us more. What are your secrets? Because I know the temperature, right? So if you keep your house cold, it definitely helps.
Brett Johnson: 05:43
Absolutely. Yep. Keeping it away from any sort of warm air current that might wick the moisture away. Definitely making sure that the stand is never dry. If there isn’t a constant pull of moisture up through the vascular system of the tree and out through the needles, through the stomata, the needles and branches can dry out.
Brett Johnson: 06:11
And actually, in those first few weeks of having your tree inside, it really wakes up and activates. And as long as you have a really well-made cut, a very clean cut on the bottom of the trunk, then those vessels will be able to move that water efficiently up and through the tree. So in a way, you’re sort of suspending the death of this tree by having that clean cut, keeping that water present and moving up through the tree and out of the stomates through the needles.
Glenda Pereira: 06:48
Alright. Then I guess folks should let us know if you’ve got competition or not. Yeah. For next year.
Brett Johnson: 06:53
Well, typically.
Glenda Pereira: 06:54
Use those tips then. Use those tips to your advantage. Brett just gave all his secrets away.
Brett Johnson: 07:00
Yeah. I tend to be able to keep my tree out till mid to late February, believe it or not.
Glenda Pereira: 07:05
That’s amazing.
Brett Johnson: 07:06
So I just love having the light and I love having the warmth in my home. And I think a lot of people would be able to share similar experiences, maybe not February, but it’s definitely one of the benefits of having access to so many choose-and-cut local Christmas tree farms and tree stand options that are supplied by local wholesale farmers. And so there’s always a fresh tree out there.
Glenda Pereira: 07:41
Yeah. And so how many Maine Christmas tree farmers are there in the state of Maine?
Brett Johnson: 07:47
Yeah. So according to the 2022 Census of Agriculture that the USDA conducts, we’re looking at 370 commercial farm businesses that produce Christmas trees. And of that, interestingly enough, we have 132 that reported that they were not cutting trees for the year, for that year that they conducted the survey, so in 2022. And to me, that signals that we have this, and I’ve found this anecdotally in the conversations I’ve had with folks, that there is this new wave of new and beginning farmers coming into the industry. And as I’d mentioned earlier, it takes seven to ten years of input and production expenses to get that tree to market.
Brett Johnson: 08:38
And a lot of those folks are going to be marketing trees here in the not too distant future.
Glenda Pereira: 08:43
So you’ve shared so many cool facts about Christmas trees, but are there any more cool facts that you want to leave our listeners with today as they gather around their tree and potentially share this holiday with their loved ones?
Brett Johnson: 08:57
I’ll just say that by purchasing a real Maine-grown Christmas tree, you’re contributing to what the Department of Agriculture, Conservation, and Forestry in Maine has estimated as being an $18,000,000 industry in terms of direct economic impact. So when you spend that money in your local economy and you support our wonderful growers here in the state of Maine, you can feel good about keeping this tradition strong for the years ahead. And hopefully your children and your children’s children will have the type of access to this excellent product that we have.
Glenda Pereira: 09:40
Yeah. And I think you mentioned, so there’s actually a Maine Christmas Tree Day that was inaugurated, or correct me with the right term. And so the Blaine House, which is down in Augusta near the state facilities and the capital of Maine, actually has on display a Maine-grown Christmas tree.
Brett Johnson: 10:02
Yeah. So this is something that’s really special, and I think in some ways unique to Maine, is that as a part of the programming of the Maine Christmas Tree Association, they have an annual Christmas tree competition at the Fryeburg Fair every year. And there are many, many different awards that are given to Christmas trees. And there are also awards for the different species of trees that are grown.
Brett Johnson: 10:32
Of course, balsam fir is very well represented, but there are some other species that are grown in Maine, but not quite to the same extent. And one of the most important awards, I would say, or most sought-after awards, is the People’s Choice Award. And so the winner of the People’s Choice Award is able to present their Christmas tree to our governor at the Blaine House each year. And that tree is there, at the Blaine House, on display. And as a part of that, there’s an annual proclamation, at least in the last few years, where the governor signs a proclamation.
Brett Johnson: 11:21
Last year, it was Friday, 11/29/2024, as a Maine-grown Christmas Tree Day in recognition and honor of the many folks that work so hard to keep this industry vibrant and helps to recognize the nearly 800 jobs and, again, the $18,000,000 in direct economic impact that Christmas trees provide to our state.
Glenda Pereira: 11:47
Yeah. Not only vibrant in the sense of community, providing economic impact back to the state, but in our homes as well. So like we mentioned before, it really lights up our homes during this Maine winter where, yes, it’s dark way too fast. But thank you so much, Brett, for sharing a little about the Maine Christmas tree industry. And if folks have more questions about starting potentially a Maine Christmas tree farm, they can certainly reach out to you because you’re going to do a ton more programming with those folks and potentially address, or try to address, some of the challenges unique to them.
Glenda Pereira: 12:27
There’s always new opportunities to learn more from you.
Brett Johnson: 12:30
Great. Thank you, Glenda.
Glenda Pereira: 12:33
Awesome. Well, thanks so much, folks, for tuning in. And again, we hope you enjoy this holiday season. If you have future topics, suggestions, questions, or comments, be sure to email us at extension.farmcast@maine.edu.