Want to avoid crowds when buying a Christmas tree? Here are the best times to go. (Hint: Not this weekend.)
Philadelphia-area tree farms and retail lots are bracing for a busy Saturday and Sunday, with already less than three weeks until Christmas.
Christmas tree farms and retailers across the Philadelphia region are gearing up for what some expect to be their busiest weekend of a shorter-than-usual holiday season.
With already less than three weeks until the big day, customers should bring good cheer — and a healthy dose of patience — if they’ll be among the masses cutting down firs, buying wreaths and pine roping, and stocking up on other holiday decor.
“If you’re trying to avoid crowds, avoiding Saturday or Sunday this weekend might be a good idea,” said Trevor Lord, co-owner of Trev’s Trees, which sells from lots in Cherry Hill, Gloucester Township, Haddon Township, Moorestown, Pennsauken, and Wynnewood.
The second weekend after Thanksgiving at Yeager’s Farm & Market in Phoenixville, “we usually have a line waiting to come in when we open and we have a line waiting when we shut down in the evening,” owner Jeff Yeager said. “We strive to provide the absolute best experience, but with it being a compressed season and so busy, there is going to be some waiting.”
This weekend is also historically the busiest at Wiggin’s Christmas Trees, which has been selling in Chester County for more than 50 years. But it’s not that crazy, manager Matt Murphy said.
“People come and go. It’s usually not a huge process,” Murphy said. “It’s not like you can’t find parking or you can’t find a tree.”
Christmas connoisseurs may choose to beat crowds by shopping a week later, but will have less to choose from if they wait.
On Tuesday, Murphy waited for 750 trees to be delivered to his precut lot on West Chester Pike. Wiggin’s expected another delivery Thursday, he said, and one last shipment Friday or early next week. Each season, Wiggin’s typically sells 3,000 trees from the lot, he said, and another 3,000 to 5,000 from its two cut-your-own farms in West Chester and Cochranville.
“You want to get out here in the next week or two for the best selection,” Murphy said.
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The National Christmas Tree Association said supply remains tight this year, as it has been for years now, but several Philadelphia-area sellers said they haven’t experienced any major issues this season. And the drought this fall in Pennsylvania and New Jersey affected baby trees much more than full-grown ones, farm owners said.
“We lost about 40% of the trees that we planted this spring,” Yeager said. “We’ll feel that in six, seven, or eight years.”
When to get your Christmas tree if you want to avoid crowds
Monday through Thursday during the day are the least crowded times for Christmas tree shopping, business owners said.
“During the week, it’s generally steady, but it’s not lines and lines of people,” said Paige Arader, co-owner of Arader Farm in Collegeville. “Saturday is typically the busiest day.”
If you can only go on the weekend, try to arrive early, before 11 a.m. Or go “when the sun goes down and it’s freezing cold,” Murphy said.
The busiest times tend to be weekend afternoons. With one bird-sized exception.
“The Eagles 100% affect how busy we are,” Lord said, with fewer customers shopping during games.
Arader said her farm also clears out when the Eagles are on. (For those looking to take advantage, the Eagles play at 1 p.m. this Sunday, Dec. 8, and at 4:25 p.m. the following Sunday, Dec. 15.)
How to pick out the best Christmas tree
With less than four weeks between Thanksgiving and Christmas, keeping your tree in tip-top shape for Santa’s arrival is easier this year.
“A lot of these trees are fresh-cut, so especially with a short season, you shouldn’t have too much of an issue keeping your tree in good health through Christmas and New Year’s,” Lord said.
And there are some steps you can take to keep your tree beautiful until 2025:
When perusing precut trees, ask when they were cut, advises Arader. Some Fraser firs brought in from other states, for example, may have been cut in September or October, while trees cut locally may have only been cut a week ago. Opt for the tree with the freshest cut.
Be wary of brown. Discolored needles, wrinkled bark, a musty smell, and other irregularities could indicate a dried-out or otherwise deteriorating tree, according to local sellers and the National Christmas Tree Association.
Do a branch-pull test. “Get a handful of needles on a branch and pull away. If the needles stay on the tree, that’s good,” Yeager said. “If a lot of needles come off, I’d probably choose a different one.”
Keep trees away from heat sources and direct sunlight. Heat dries out a tree faster, according to the NCTA, while a lower room temperature slows down that process.
At home, give your tree warm water first, Yeager and Murphy suggest. “The first time you fill up your tree stand, use the hottest tap water to melt the sap and let water flow up your tree,” Yeager said. “The sap hardens and makes a seal on the bottom of the trunk.” Water temperature doesn’t matter after the first fill, he added. Every day for the first week, check your tree stand’s reservoir to make sure it’s full. Then, fill it based on how much the tree is drinking.
Invest in LED lights, if you haven’t already. They don’t give off heat, which is healthier for the tree and safer for those in the home, Yeager said.