GEORGIA CHRISTMAS TREE ASSOCIATION, INC.

TREE TALKSeptember 2010 Edition

The baler sure gets some attention. Looks like a tour event at Worthington’s Farm

Published by the Georgia Christmas Tree Association, 401 Oxford Circle, Concord, GA 30206

Volume 23, No. 3, September 2010

Table of Contents

Advertiser’s Index 3

Association Officers 4

President’s Letter 5

Executive Officer Report 2010 6

Association Finances-Cash Flow-YTD 7

Minutes of General Meeting 8

Next Association Meeting 10

Make This Christmas Season Different - Hire a Santa and Rent Some Reindeer 14

An Evaluation of Christmas Tree Preservatives 16

GCTA Marketing Update 20

2010 Trees for Troops 21

National Director Report 37

History of Christmas Trees 38

Coy’s Ramblings 39

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Advertiser’s Index

Bass Trees and Supply - - - - - - - 36

Byron Lakewood Nursery - - - - - - 33

Cinco Plastics, (Tree Stands) - - - - - - 19

Evans Christmas Products - - - - - - 15

Garland Tree Sales - - - - - - - - 5

Kelco Industries - - - - - - - - 9

Murray’s Southern Christmas Tree Nursery - - - 27

Neddie Mountain Farm - - - - - - - 22

Oak Pond Nursery - - - - - - - - 12

Roan Valley Tree Farm - - - - - - - 41-

Veldsma & Sons - - - - - - - - 32

Wagoner’s Fraser Knoll - - - - - - - 40

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Association Officers

President---Tommy Thompson -- 20101829 Prospect Rd, Lawrenceville, GA 30043. 770.513.2552. Email: tstrees-bellsouth.net

President Elect --

Chuck Berry -- 2010185 McCord St. Covington GA 30014. 770-786-1370 Email:berryplace-yahoo.com

1st Vice President --

Vacant

Past President --

Dewayne Herrin 2010106 Bacon St. Jesup, GA 31545. 912.530.9672 Email: herrinsnest-bellsouth.net

Executive Director --

Linda Wilson -- 2008120 Cordele Rd, Hawkinsville, GA 31036. 478-230-3646 Email:treefarm-pstel.net

National Director --

Gordon Hunter 201114680 Wood Rd, Milton, GA 30004. 770-475-0713 Email: gordonhunter-bellsouth.net

Northern Directors Liz Kinsey 20097171 Jot-em-Down Rd, Gainesville, GA 30506 770-887-5541

Greg Smith -- 20112375 Old Kings Bridge Rd.Nicholson GA 30565 706-757-3560 Email: gjasmith-windstream.net

Central Directors

Earl Worthington 2010 195 Twin Oaks Dr, Hampton, GA 30228, 770-478-4355 Email: treefarming-yahoo.com

Jim Butler 20123850 Hwy 81 West, Hampton, GA 30228Email: jim-christmastreehome.com

Southern Directors

Rick Palmer 20116899 Thompson Pond Rd. Tarrytown GA 30470, 912-529-3702 Email: secretforest-planttel.net

Lacy Jackson 20103452 Pateville Rd, Cordele, GA 31015 229-273-5748

Webmaster: Jim Butler 3850 Hwy 81 West, Hampton, GA 30228, 770-707-0584 Email: jim-christmastreehome.com

Tree Talk Editor

Natalie Cooper, 40 Spring St, Buford, GA 30518, 404-642-1101, Email: twougaalums-bellsouth.net

Tree Talk assistants:

Advertising Sales: Denise Thompson, 770-513-2552, Email: tstrees-bellsouth.net Printing, Coy Dillahunty, 770.884.0022, Email: dillahuc-bellsouth.net

Advertising RatesFull page ---- $150.00! Page ------ 75.00! Page ------ 65.00" Page ------- 45.00Rates given are for black & white ad copy. Spot color or color strip $10.00 additional. Full color ads are available at double the base price. Contracts on four or more consecutive ads are discounted 10%. New ad submission deadlines are the 1st of month preceding the issue date. For design assistance contact Coy Dillahunty, 770-884-0022 Email:dillahuc-bellsouth.net

Published Quarterly, March, June, September, and

December.

Georgia Christmas Tree Association, Inc.120 Cordele Rd,

Hawkinsville, GA 31036 Phone 478-230-3646

Email: treefarm-pstel.netVisit our web site at

www.gacta.com

Established 1961

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President’s LetterBy Tommy Thompson

Hello everyone,

Don’t know about everyone else, but I am so GLAD that fall is almost here!!

We have had a very hot and dry summer at our farm. Speaking of fall, we

are looking forward to the fall meeting at The Worthington’s Farm. I sure

hope everyone is making plans to attend. I feel sure that this is going to be

a great meeting.

As you all know, this will be my

last President’s letter, as Chuck

Berry will become our new

President at this meeting. I just

want to tell everyone how

honored I have been to be the

President of the wonderful

association. I have always said

that some of the best people you

will ever meet are Christmas tree

growers and I think our

association is the BEST! Thanks

to everyone for your support and

help during my presidency.

I want to ask everyone to become more involved with the association...the

more input we get, the better we become. Denise & I are looking forward to

seeing everyone at the fall meeting.

Tommy

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Executive Officer Report 2010Georgia Christmas Tree Association

I hope this finds you all well and with plentiful water. Here in south central

Georgia, we are having a very dry, hot summer. The rain seems to stop

right at the borders of our farm. Even the weeds are calling it a season early

this year. We hope it doesn’t decide to make up for the deficit in rain

during selling season again….Actually, we can’t complain about the heat

because we were touring the country in our camper for over 7 weeks. It was

wonderful and in most places cooler.

I have sent out reminders to those of you who have not paid your dues.

September 1 is the deadline to not have your name dimmed on the website.

Jim Butler, our webmaster wizard will be busy preparing his farm for the

selling season so it isn’t fair to expect him to reinstate you at the last

minute. Please get the checks in the mail. Also, please take a minute to

check your email address on the website. I am still getting send errors for a

few of you.

Hopefully everyone has signed up for the fall meeting. We have several new

members that will be attending. They are anxious to meet you and glean

Christmas tree farming information from you. Looks like Earl has lined up

a terrific meeting for us. We have several guest speakers. You will be busy

all day long. The meeting itself will be conducted at the Calvin Center.

They have a new chef. He has a wonderful menu for lunch and dinner for

us. The business meeting will be held in the Lakeview Room. It is all glass

overlooking the lake.

I have been sending “Welcome” packages for new members. If you have

any material you think should be included, please bring a sample with you

to the meeting.

Respectfully,

Linda Wilson, Executive Officer

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Association Finances-Cash Flow-YTD1/1/2010 – 8/25/10

INCOME

Dues 5995.00

Meeting Income 396.00

Ad Sales 2565.00

Subscription 12.00

Total Income 8968.00

Expenses

Ad Sales Commission 576.00

Bank fee 10.00

Bookkeeping 1800.00

Corporate Registration State 30.00

Postage 141.66

Software 109.67

Supplies 1732.73

TIP NACTA program 1620.00

Tree Talk Editor 180.00

Website 103.99

Total Expenses 6304.05

Net $2663.95

(CD Balance $10,791.12 matures 12/2010)

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Georgia Christmas Tree Association, Inc

Minutes of General Meeting

September 19, 2009

David Ridgeway opened the meeting at 9 am, September, 19, 2009, at the

Jackson Fairgrounds meeting room. He welcomed the membership to the area.

Tommy Thompson, President, called for volunteers for the unfilled positions of

Vice President and two Director positions. Liz Kinsey volunteered as the

northern Director and Jim Butler for the southern Director. The Vice President

position remains open. Linda Wilson was reelected as Secretary/ Treasurer and

will serve as Executive Director. Coy Dillahunty was given a gift of appreciation

and round of applause for his ten years of service to the Association. It was noted

that he was recognized at the National Association meeting for his contributions.

The Treasurer’s report and minutes were in the last issue of Tree Talk. There

were no changes. There was a discussion to allow retired tree growers to remain

with the Association at a reduced rate.

Coy said we were still waiting for the final check from the National Association

for the balance of money earned hosting the riverboat dinner in Chattanooga.

He reminded the members that they had agreed to split 75% of the profit with the

people that attended the National meeting. He anticipated each person would

receive $64.93. The money is to be distributed after the check arrives.

Chuck Berry discussed his application for grant money. He applied for $60,000

and received $30,000. The money will be used for billboards for the next three

years. He reviewed the factors involved in selecting sites. He showed us a mock

up of the billboard. There were several small changes suggested.

Chuck also discussed CapitalQ as a credit card vendor. He gave us a breakdown

of their rates. They allow seasonal use and are a National Association sponsor.

Tommy recognized the new growers attending their first meeting.

Paschal Brewer discussed the fair in October. He passed a signup sheet for

volunteers. Tommy asked that we thank the Brewers for all their work each year

at the fair.

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The vendors attending the meeting were recognized and thanked for their

participation.

Don Watson discussed his twenty-one plus years selling Christmas trees. He

talked about the many changes to the market. He reported on the media’s lack of

reporting on the truth of artificial trees. He felt the fact that they are almost

completely made of petroleum products

should be a bigger story. He feels we

should individually remind them that

artificial trees impact our oil prices at

the pump. Bill Murray referred to

them as “opec bushes”.

Greg Smith introduced the new pick up

sites for our “Trees for Troops”

program this year. He said he has

added the new sites to drop off trees

because of increased interest from the

military, including the National Guard

Units in Georgia. He reviewed the

many ways a farm can participate and

how they can involve their customers.

Gordon Hunter added that he felt it

was a great program for publicity.

Sandra Bottoms talked about involving

school classes to send a tree and

handwritten cards.

The meeting was adjourned at 11:20.

Respectfully submitted,

Linda Wilson,

Executive Director

Georgia Christmas Tree Association, Inc.

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Next Association Meeting

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Program

8:00 Coffee and registration at Worthington Tree Farm

8:30 Farm tour to view several species of grafted fir as well as improved rooted Virginia Pine.

10:00 Travel to Calvin Center

10:15 Meeting call to order--introduction of vendors at the Calvin Center

10:30 Dr. John Frampton will talk about work in the selection of superior strains of Virginia pine and their success in vegetative propagation of Virginia pine.

11:15 Dr. Dennis Hazel will report on work they have been doing at NC State using herbicides in “chemical mowing”.

12:00 Lunch at Calvin Center dining room

1:00 Dr. Mark Czarnota will discuss the use of herbicides in Christmas tree production. This is useful in young trees before it is possible to use Glyphosate.

1:45 Break with vendors

2:00 Business meeting

3:00 Roundtable discussions. Bring your laptops/ website and Facebook demonstrations/wireless service available

4:00 Board of Directors Meeting--return to farm if desired.

6:30 Dinner at Calvin Center dining room - Rep. Tom McCall of Elberton will be our evening speaker. He is Chairman of the House Ag Committee.

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Other Useful Information

Rooms are available at the Calvin Center. Contact them for reservations at 770-946-4276.

There are several other motels in the area at I-75, exit 218. Holiday Inn Express 1315 Hwy 20 West, McDonough, GA, phone 800-345-8082 Hilton Garden Inn 95 Highway 81 West, McDonough, GA, phone 678-827-7200 Hampton Inn 855 Industrial Boulevard, McDonough, GA, phone 770-914-0077Country Hearth Inn 1078 Bear Creek Blvd. Hampton, GA, phone 770-707-1477

Worthington tree farmFrom I-75, take McDonough exit 221 onto Jonesboro Rd, west.Jonesboro Rd, which becomes McDonough Rd. Turn left onto Babbs Mill Rd.Follow Babbs Mill Rd, which becomes Carl Parker Rd, then Twin Oaks Dr.

Calvin Center13550 Woolsey Road, Hampton, GA

Shortest route from Worthington tree farm to the Calvin Center:At end of Twin Oaks, turn right onto Carl Parker, follow Carl Parker to Old GA. 3, go straight ahead across RR tracks and follow North Steel (gravel road) about 1/2 mi. turn right on GA 81, follow to traffic light at US 19/41, cross over onto Woolsey Rd. and follow to Calvin Center (about 4 mi.).Total mileage 7.5. Miles.(Note: There have been times when the RR barrier at Old GA. 3 and N. Steel has malfunctioned!) An alternative route using a RR bridge is to turn right at Old Ga. 3, go through Lovejoy on Old GA. 3, bear left at McDonough Rd., go over the RR bridge and turn left at the traffic light on US 19/41, Follow US 19/41 about three miles and turn right at the traffic light onto Woolsey Rd. Follow Woolsey Rd to the Calvin Center on right.Total mileage 10 miles.

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RegistrationPlease fill in this information and return it to Linda Wilson, 120 Cordele Hwy, Hawkinsville, GA 31036or email the information to GACTA-pstel.net

Name ___________________________________

Farm ____________________________________

Spouse or Guests Name attending ___________________________

Lunch menu: soup, salads, sandwiches

Dinner menu: roast beef, chicken cordon bleu, vegetable lasagna, plus vegetables and dessert (They have a new award-winning chef)

Please circle the appropriate box:

Member attending $15 Guest $10

Lunch $8 $8

Dinner $23 $23

Total $______ + _______ = $_______ You can mail the check with your selections or bring it with you to the meeting.

See you in September!

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Make This Christmas Season Different - Hire a Santa and Rent Some Reindeer

Reindeer Rental:

www.georgiareindeer.com

From their website: How can you make your Christmas tree lot stand out from the dozens of others in your area? Try putting some reindeer out front and watch which lot quickly becomes the most popular.

A Christmas tree farm that offers people not only the chance to select their own tree, but to pet and feed live reindeer should receive plenty of customers; customers that will spread the word to their friends and family about which farm has the reindeer.Looking for a unique idea for your Holiday party? You could invite not only Santa, but his furry helpers as well.

During the Holiday season every shopping center and mall has lights, holiday music, decorations and even Santa. But how many, especially in Georgia, have live reindeer? There may not be a more cost effective way to increase your shopping traffic.We can provide our reindeer anywhere in the state of Georgia. Please contact us about availability or with any other questions you may have.

For more information on their services and pricing you may call John at770-435-5781 or email Sandy at: info-georgiareindeer.com

Santa Rental:

www.georgiasantas.com

From their website:SantaforHire.com® is a company that provides Real Bearded Santas for Malls, Corporate events, TV and print advertisements, private parties and celebrity events. We have provided Santas for home visits, appearances at company parties and Christmas Events, to photo studios for photo shoots and Santas for TV Ads and Movies roles. We provide Santas to Department Stores, Shopping Centers and Malls from Bangor Maine, Cape Cod, New York and Miami on the East Coast and from Alaska to Seattle, San Francisco, Hollywood, Los Angeles and San Diego on the West Coast, and many locations throughout the Western USA, Mid-USA, Southern USA and Northeast USA. We provide Santas Internationally in Hong Kong and Shenzhen China and have requests to provide Santas in Macau, Singapore, Malaysia, London and Dublin Ireland.

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Our Santas have been featured in many local newspapers and major nationwide newspapers including the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal. Additionally our Santas have appeared on local and national Television Shows.

SantaforHire.com is celebrating the start of its tenth (10th) season of providing Real Bearded Santas nationwide and internationally.

There are 18 Santas available for rent in Georgia.

For more information on their services and pricing you may reach them at 770-225-0012 or email at info-Santaforhire.com

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An Evaluation of Christmas Tree Preservatives

By Jeffrey H. Owen, Area Extension Forestry Specialist, Christmas Tree Production & Marketing, NC State University

A couple of years ago, a grower asked me to evaluate a Christmas tree preservative packaged by Peters Fertilizer company and sold by one of his major chain store customers. Several of his trees had lost needles when consumers treated them with this preservative. Trees were returned to stores with abnormally heavy needle loss. The consumers had used this preservative according to label directions using the provided measuring spoon. While the grower “made it right” with his customer, he resented paying for a problem created by another product sold at the store. None of his other wholesale customers experienced similar problems with the fresh trees they received.

When I looked for the Christmas tree preservative on line, Peters had discontinued its production. When I went to the chain store the following Thanksgiving, a new preservative packaged by EZgardner was prominently displayed by the garden center sales register. Ezgardner Christmas tree preservative was packaged as 2-inch long pellets to be conveniently added to water on a weekly basis. I bought some of it to test alongside the Peters product that the grower had given me.

Talk to your buyers about this problem before they put Christmas tree preservatives on the shelf.

I started with a small pilot study in my office using branches cut from the same ten trees. I started with three treatments: clean tap water, the Peters preservative, and the EZgardner preservative. I added first doses of the preservatives to the water according to their labels. I maintained water levels without adding additional preservatives even though the labels called for additional material at weekly intervals. Branches were lightly brushed at weekly intervals to evaluate needle loss.

I rated needle loss on a 7-point scale shown in the box. Points 1 through 4 on the scale are all less than 10% needle loss because even a small loss is unusual for Fraser fir. From ratings of 1 to 3, dropped needles are visible on the surface below the branch, but not readily on the shoots. Gaps between needles become more visible at a rating of 4. Ratings of 5 or 6 reflect serious visible needle loss and one of 7 represents extensive needle loss with much of the branch stem being exposed.

After three weeks, the 10 branches kept in tap water exhibited an average needle loss rating of 2.4 or about 1-3%. The Peters treatment exhibited an average needle loss of 4.5%- enough to make the foliage start to look ragged. The EZgardner product induced very heavy needle loss on most branches for an average rating of 6.6%. Both preservatives were clearly detrimental to the durability of Fraser fir foliage.

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GCTA Marketing Update

I do not think there has ever been a time when the GCTA was in more need of a big marketing campaign than now. Over the past 30 years or so, Georgia-grown Christmas trees have virtually sold themselves. The family unit was much different that it is now and there were no big-box retailers on every corner that either sold imported or artificial trees. Everyone had time to go out to a farm and choose their own tree. Things have changed and most people hardly have time to eat supper anymore, much less sit down and eat together. We have got to do more to convince the fast-paced public that it is worth their time to visit our farm and enjoy a true family tradition. That being said, I wanted to update you on the 2009 USDA Specialty Crop Grant funds and what is being done. The four “Choose and Cut Your Own Christmas Tree” billboards will be up November 1st. This is the 2nd year of a three-year $30,000 project. We received numerous comments last year about the billboards from across the state. The locations for 2010 are (1) I-75 – Macon, (2) I-85 – Norcross, (3) I-75 – Adairsville, (4) I-20 – Conyers. I am also pleased to report that the GCTA has received notification that we have been awarded an additional $30,000 from the 2010 USDA Specialty Crop Grant allotment. I was unaware of the additional funding until the last minute so I had to complete the application process within a very short time frame. After a brief discussion with a few members, I made the decision the submit a request for funding to allow us to print a new full-color “Choose and Cut” guide and produce a 10-minute movie-quality video depicting the benefits of buying a Georgia-grown Christmas tree. The plan is to develop and print 30,000 “Choose and Cut” guides to promote all GCTA-member farms. These guides will be distributed to state welcome centers, local chambers of commerce, Farm Bureau offices, and other public institutions that we see fit. Also, a copy of the video will be available to all members and can be used at meeting, schools, fairs, and trade shows, etc. I think these will be marketing tools that we can get a lot of mileage from for many years to come. In addition to the above mentioned items, I also have three banners that also promote the “Choose and Cut Your Own Christmas Tree” message. If anyone would like to use one for a fair booth or trade show, please let me know. Thanks to everyone for allowing me to help the GCTA take advantage of these marketing funds. Please do not forget the Annual Meeting on September 18th at Earl Worthington’s farm in Hampton. We have a very informative meeting scheduled and hope to see all of you there. Please contact Linda Wilson with the number of persons attending so that we can make the proper reservations for the planned meals. Thank You, Chuck Berry 770-602-6003

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2010 Trees for Troops

I hope everyone survived the heat over the past 3 months. It has taken its toll at the 7 G’s Farm. We had very little rain to go with the heat. That along with recovery from rotator cuff surgery has made life very interesting this year. Life goes on, Christmas is coming, 3 months and it will be time to begin the 2010 sale season.

I want to thank you for allowing me to coordinate the Georgia Christmas Tree Growers Association’s efforts with Trees for Troops. This will mark the 6th year the GACTA has participated in this program with growth in your donations every year. I have included the list of farms participating last year within this article. Thanks again for our generosity.

Please review the pages within this article for data/articles/pictures on last year’s program. The link to National Christmas Tree Association web site has changed this year to http://www.christmastree.org/home.cfm See the story board I have put together for the Fall Meeting at Earl Worthington’s and for the State Fair in Perry, GA.

We have always maintained a pledge of 500 trees for Fed Ex delivery to a major military base. This year the 48th Georgia National Guard unit returned from their 13 month deployment in Afghanistan. We were able to supply some trees to that unit last year but we would love to expand that with greater numbers this year. Read the email from the unit in Bainbridge within this article.

I am again asking for you to think about your 2010 commitment to the program. I have already received pledges for trees to fill up 6 trailers - 125 trees per trailer. If you want to take yours to those points let them know so that an accurate count can be maintained.

Southern Christmas Tree Plantation

7 G’s Farm

Jack’s Creek Christmas Tree Farm

Earl Worthington’s Farm

I would like to add to this list. I need additional collection points in northwest GA. /Central Ga. /Southeast Ga. /East central Ga.

I would like to get Fed Ex to pick up at as many of the collection points as possible so they can be added into the “official” Trees for Troops count. Last year those picked up by GNG personnel were not recognized.

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If you would like to donate directly to a military base, let me know so that I may give you the base contact person and make you aware of Fed Ex delivery date to that base.

If you donate locally to service personnel or would like me to link you up with your local GA National Guard Family Readiness Coordinator please get in touch with me. I want to make sure we recognize as many trees as we can for our 2010 count.

In closing I hope we can make the 2010 donations reach as many of our service personnel as possible. It the least we can do for the sacrifices that they have made.

Greg N. Smith, 7 G’s Farm/www.7gsfarm.com, 706-202=8936

(NOTE: The National web site is being updated at this time and things are changing. Don’t be surprised if you find something that looks entirely different from what is displayed in this Trees for Troops material. Some web addresses have changed in their update. Go to the home page and follow the links, they should be up to date.)

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Above Emails, Greg trying to correct number of trees reported as donated by Georgia Association. Adding machine says 1230 for 2009.

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NCTA Home page Showing Christmas Spirit Foundation links. www.christmastree.org

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Continued on next page.

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Above material was accessed from National web site home page by clicking on a link At the bottom of the Christmas Spirit Foundation section titled:

Are you a grower, retailer or military base participating in this year's program?

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Continued on next page.

Address to find latest version - www.christmasspiritfoundation.org/programs/trees4troops/home.htm

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Media info release sample.

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Sample letter format you may wish to use to make contacts.

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Fed Ex pickup trailer heading to Fort Gordon

Above email from Fort Gordon family to Chuck Berry.

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Above Email from a staff person at the Bainbridge Family Assistance Center for Georgia National Guard.

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National Director Report

It is hard to believe that a whole year has gone by since we (the GCTA + Tenn. + the Southern Assoc.) put on the National Christmas Tree Association’s annual convention and trade show up in Chattanooga last summer. All the feedback that I have received from around the country was that we did a terrific job and the attendees appreciated the hospitality offered. They especially enjoyed the river boat dinner cruise that we hosted on the Tennessee River. Besides having a great time, I am proud to say that we came out ahead financially on that “Theme Night” event and we were able to add some funds to our GCTA treasury.

My wife, Brooke, and I just got back from the NCTA convention and trade show held at Winston-Salem, NC. It was a good show also. I felt that our Theme Night was better last year in Chattanooga, but they had more vendors at the trade show this year which made for some interesting opportunities.

The big thought that I would like to bring back to you is that we have a great marketing tool this season. This year, 2010, is the 500th anniversary of the first recorded decorated Christmas tree. Some 500 years ago in 1510 a merchant’s guild in Riga, Latvia decorated a tree with paper roses for the marketplace. The fir tree commemorated the Holy Child and the roses were a symbol of the Virgin Mary. The NCTA accepts this as the official occurrence of the first decorated tree and is leading this celebration in the US this year. The NCTA has all sorts of marketing ideas and they can help us with some press releases that we could certainly use to approach the press and media. One idea that was suggested was to give a free tree to your 500th customer. Also there are great opportunities to work with your local elementary schools to have Christmas Tree decorating contests for the 500th year. We’ve had wonderful success in the past with the NCTA’s “Trees for Troops” campaign and this is just another way to bring more interest to our farms. There is also a company, Fine Art Ltd. that has partnered with the NCTA to offer some terrific ornaments, dinner ware and paintings that commemorate this important 500th year. We have bought some to display and sell at our farm and we believe that they would be very popular on yours also. They are first class materials and you can find out more about them on their website: www.fineartlimited.com. We’ll bring some things to show at the Sept meeting. This is just another reason to join and be a part of the national association. They do so much for us that we would find it hard to do on our own. Join now, and get in on all the great support that they can give us.

Next year’s NCTA convention and trade show will be held at a resort on the shores of Lake Erie at Sandusky, Ohio. It’s a day’s drive from Georgia and will be

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a wonderful vacation spot to take the whole family next August. Start planning now for a fun and profitable summer trip.

It has been a great honor to represent Georgia on the National Board of Directors for the past three years. I have learned much about how we all need to stick together with our national association that represents our industry in promotions of real trees and to fight off the growth of the fake plastic tree industry that is taking over our market share. The NCTA is also a great voice in the political scene to lobby for legislation that helps us with agricultural labor and taxation problems. There is strength in numbers and we need to get over the costs of membership to realize that there is a greater good in being a part of our national association as well as our state. It is money well spent.

My term of office will end next summer and I am planning to turn over this opportunity to serve to some one else. I hope that there will be an interest in some of you to enjoy the service and to get a wonderful view of the bigger picture of our industry. Thank you for supporting me. It has been an honor to represent you. Sincerely,Gordon Hunter

History of Christmas Trees

• 1510 – The first written record of a decorated Christmas Tree comes from Riga, Latvia. Men of the local merchants’ guild decorated a tree with artificial roses, danced around it in the marketplace and then set fire to it. The rose was used for many year and is considered to be a symbol for the Virgin Mary.

• 1530 – There is record from Alsace, France (then Germany territory) that trees were sold in the marketplace and brought home and set up undecorated. Laws limited the size to “8 shoe lengths” (slightly over 4 feet).

• 1600s – By the 17th century, it was common in Germany to decorate Christmas Trees with apples. This practice was a holdover from the 14th and 15th centuries when evergreen boughs hung with apples were the only prop used in the “miracle plays” that were performed at the churches on December 24. December 24 was Adam & Eve’s Day in the early Christian calendar, and the plays were used as ways of teaching the Bible to a largely illiterate population.

• 1700s – In parts of Austria and Germany, evergreen tips were brought into the home and hung top down from the ceiling. They were often decorated with apples, gilded nuts and red paper strips. Edible ornaments became so popular on Christmas Trees that they were often called “sugar trees.” The first accounts of using lighted candles as decorations on Christmas Trees come from France in the 18th century.

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• 1800s – The Christmas Tree was introduced in the United States by German settlers. It rapidly grew from tabletop size to floor-to-ceiling.

• 1851 – Christmas Trees began to be sold commercially in the United States. They were taken at random from the forests.

• 1853 – Franklin Pierce is credited with bringing the first Christmas Tree to the White House.

• Late 1800s – The first glass ornaments were introduced into the United States, again from Germany. The first ones were mostly balls, but later chains of balls, toys and figures became more common.

• Around 1883 – Sears, Roebuck & Company began offering the first artificial Christmas trees – 33 limbs for $.50 and 55 limbs for $1.00.

• 1900s – Due to over harvesting, the natural supply of evergreens began to be decimated. Conservationists became alarmed, and many magazines began to encourage people to substitute an artificial “snow” covered tree, consisting of a branch of a deciduous tree wrapped in cotton.

• 1901 – The first Christmas Tree farm was started in 1901 when W.V. McGalliard planted 25,000 Norway spruce on his farm in New Jersey. Also in 1901, Theodore Roosevelt tried to stop the practice of having Christmas Trees out of concern about the destruction of forests. His two sons didn’t agree and enlisted the help of conservationist Gifford Pinchot to persuade the president that, done properly, the practice was not harmful to the forests.

• 1930s – President Franklin D. Roosevelt started a Christmas Tree farm on his estate in Hyde Park, New York.

• 1966 – The National Christmas Tree Association began its time-honored tradition of having the Grand Champion grower present a Christmas Tree to the First Lady for display in the Blue Room of the White House. That year, Howard Pierce of Black River Falls, Wisconsin, presented a tree to President Lyndon Johnson and First Lady Lady Bird Johnson.

• Today – Approximately 25-30 million Real Christmas Trees are sold each year in the United States. Almost all of these come from Christmas Tree plantations.

Timeline provided by The Rocks Christmas Tree Farm, Bethlehem, NH.

Coy’s Ramblings

Since I get the last shot at the magazine, I will include some of my thoughts as they develop in the process of getting this organized and printed. I am enjoying my retirement from the grind of keeping things “organized” for the Association. I am sure Linda found more work than she expected. I know I did when I first started.

Natalie is getting the material together and sending to me. I do the layout and inserting of the ads along with some of the pictures. Speaking of pictures, hope you don’t mind me hooking some from your web sites to use in the magazine. Have done that the last two covers and who knows what else I may need to fill a corner before I get this together. Denise Thompson is still trying to sell advertising. Got one new one for this issue. Hope we can keep them. The members need to remember to support our advertisers. The ad prices are designed to cover the cost of getting the magazine out. Sometimes it is close. Postage and printing ink are the expensive items.

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Looking forward to seeing all at the meeting in a few days. Looks like Earl has a good program developed. He always has something to show that he is working on. I never had the knowledge to get into trying to develop a new tree myself. If things depended on me I would still be growing Virginia pine. From some of the research I have read about lately, we may go back to that one for some of our trees. A lot of people still like it better as a Christmas Tree.

Be sure to plan on the Trees for Troops donation. Also use it to develop relations with your customers.

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Georgia Christmas Tree Association

120 Cordele Rd

Hawkinsville, GA 31036

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