Last Saturday, we loaded into the Suburban and headed north on I77 to get a Christmas tree. Our destination was Reed Island Tree Farm near Hillsville, Virginia, on a recommendation from one of the guys who works for me. We headed out around 10am, and arrived about 1115am, not a bad trip at all.
Reed Island is a cut & carry place, where you grab a saw (the long measuring stick is optional), hop onto the trailer behind a tractor, and take a ride into the fields of Fraser Firs. We hopped off the trailer, and let the kids run through the fields to find the perfect tree. If you've done this before, you know that size and scope can be deceptive, but we measured height versus the top of my head, figuring it shouldn't be more than a foot higher.
Fraser Firs are awesome Christmas trees, with the iconic shape you hope for (if you're from these parts, you come to expect it). When you cut them fresh, you don't have to worry about the tree drying out, or shedding its needles very much.
We explored around the field for a while, each tree a row over seeming to be better than the one we just looked at. We finally settled on one, and commenced to sawing. I let all the kids take a turn with the bow saw, so in the end, we all cut it down together. You then drag it a few yards to the tractor trail, and young men come around to pick it up. They then shake off the loose needles with a shaking contraption, and feed the tree through a baler, wrapping it tightly with netting string.
Meanwhile, we explored the little craft table, and bought some bbq sandwiches (which i loved, but Julie & Caroline didn't). They were supposed to have free cider and hot chocolate, but i didn't see it anywhere. I paid for the tree (only $42 for trees up to 8 feet tall), and the young guys spent a while tieing it onto the roof of the car.
When we got home, and got the tree up on our tree stand, we cut the net strings, and the tree popped back into its original shape and breadth. In all our worries about the height, we never stopped to think about how far around the thing was.
We all had a great time, a fun adventure. Once you count gas and all, i'm sure you don't save any money versus buying from a cut lot down the street, but the family experience makes all the difference.
