Choose Your Own Tree at a North Carolina Christmas Tree Farm

The arrival of the Christmas season, for many North Carolina families, means it’s time to visit a local tree farm to pick out the holiday centerpiece. 

According to the North Carolina Christmas Tree Association, the state has more than 850 tree growers on an estimated 38,000 acres. Located on opposite ends of the state, Justice Farms and Mistletoe Meadows are two such farms offering fresh trees that you can choose and even cut yourself. 

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Photo credit: Eric Waters

Justice Farms

Near the coast in Jacksonville, Justice Farms was started by Willie and Benita Justice back in 1983. Their granddaughter, Becky Rooks, says for many customers, picking out their own Christmas tree has become a highly anticipated experience each holiday season.

“Anyone could go to a big box store and pick out a tree that’s still wrapped up and was probably cut in September. But people have shown us they are craving an adventure for their family,” Rooks says. “It’s not only about the tree. Rather, it’s about coming out and letting the kids run around the fields and ride on our little train. We love to see families getting their cart and saw, picking out the perfect tree, and working to cut it down as a family. Instead of just being a purchase, it becomes about creating a tradition.”

Justice Farms grows white pines, Green Giants, Leyland cypress, Carolina Sapphires and other varieties suitable for their coastal environment. They also bring in pre-cut Fraser firs purchased from the North Carolina mountains. The farm has about 2,000 trees growing at a time and generally sells between 1,200 to 1,500 trees each year.

See more: 5 North Carolina Choose-and-Cut Christmas Tree Farms

Photo credit: Eric Waters

Trees, Trees, Trees

“Bestsellers are the Fraser firs, because they’re the typical Christmas tree, and the white pines,” Rooks says. “We have people who come looking specifically for the white pines because it’s the tree they grew up with, and they’re not easy to find anymore.”

To be a successful tree grower in North Carolina, Rooks says it takes perseverance, a good sense of humor and an amazing community.

“Between drought, disease and hurricane season, tree farming in Eastern North Carolina is full of pitfalls. And most people don’t realize the bulk of growing Christmas trees is done in the hottest part of the year,” she says. “We could not have made it through the last 30 years without our family and community’s support.”

She says getting to work with great people and serve their customers is the most rewarding part of the job.

“Everyone manages to find the tree that perfectly fits their family. Obviously, we want all our trees we’ve grown to be perfect and uniform. But they’re natural, and beauty is in the eye of the beholder,” Rooks says with a laugh. “We have one group that comes every year requesting the ugliest tree we have. They take it home and always decorate it to be the most awesome tree. We always talk about how fortunate we are to be part of so many people’s Christmas memories and traditions each year.”

Photo credit: Eric Waters

Mistletoe Meadows

What does it take to be a National Grand Champion Christmas tree grower? Just ask Joe Freeman of Laurel Springs in the western North Carolina mountains.

“Patience, perseverance, a lot of hard work and a great support network of family, friends and employees is how we’ve been successful,” says the award-winning evergreen grower.

Freeman got his start in the business when he was still in high school, working on a retail Christmas tree lot in Greensboro every holiday season. He continued working there through college. After moving to Laurel Springs in 1988, he planted 1 acre of Fraser fir trees while working on a tree farm owned by Fred Wagoner. A couple years later, Freeman bought his own property and began his own tree farm.

That farm, Mistletoe Meadows, has since been awarded more than a dozen accolades, including being named the National Grand Champion Christmas Tree Grower in 2007. That distinction came with the privilege of providing the official White House Christmas tree for former President George W. Bush and first lady Laura Bush.

“The Grand Champion grower has the honor of donating the official White House Christmas tree, which is displayed in the Blue Room,” Freeman says. “My wife and I presented the tree to Laura Bush and made several trips to the White House.”

Mistletoe Meadows also had the honor of providing Christmas trees for then-Vice President Joe Biden in 2010, Virginia’s first lady Maureen McDonnell in 2010 and North Carolina Gov. Michael Easley in 2001.

See more: Farm Facts: Christmas Trees

Photo credit: Justin Kase Conder

Tree-t Yourself

Freeman grows several species of trees. These include Fraser fir (a species native to the North Carolina mountains), Turkish fir, Canaan fir, Concolor fir, white pine, Colorado blue spruce and Norway spruce. Mistletoe Meadows harvests between 15,000 and 20,000 trees every year. Fraser fir remains the most popular species because of its desirable characteristics. These trees have a deep green color, sturdy branches, a pleasant aroma and excellent needle retention after being cut.

“In 1990, I began making wreaths and garland and developed a wholesale Christmas greenery business as part of my farming operation. I’ve been fortunate enough to win both the North Carolina and the National Wreath Contests several times,” Freeman says. “I enjoy working outside and staying close to a natural, healthy environment. The most rewarding time is helping individuals and families find that perfect tree or wreath.”

See more: 4 Festive Christmas Cookie Recipes for a Holiday Cookie Swap

One trend Freeman has noticed in the tree industry is customers are buying their Christmas trees earlier.

“In the 1990s and early 2000s, the first weekend in December was always our biggest weekend. Now it’s Thanksgiving weekend,” he says. “We also see more tabletop trees being sold as a second tree, and wreath sales have increased. People are really embracing the use of real evergreens to decorate their homes and businesses.”

– Jessica Mozo