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MONTPELIER, Vermont (AP) – People might need to reduce their expectations for Christmas trees this year.
A limited offer means that some buyers will pay more and look for the perfect Christmas tree this holiday season. But there is no need to panic at Black Friday, as industry experts say consumers will have something to decorate for the holiday season.
The imbalance of the yuletide market was created a decade ago when the overabundance of Christmas trees and the Great Recession combined to drive many producers out of business. Now the supply is limited and it takes eight to ten years – the time needed to grow a Christmas tree – to increase the supply.
"It's bad, it's the worst I've seen in a long time," said Matthew LaCasce, co-owner of the Finestkind Christmas tree farm in Dover-Foxcroft, in New York. Maine. The farm sells about 10,000 trees each season and declines daily orders from desperate retailers, LaCasce said.
Large retailers are doing very well, officials said. Charities, school groups and small family businesses have had to fight for trees.
In Hawaii, Christmas tree vendor Richard Tajiri said he had lost 1,000 trees this season.
"It will be difficult for everyone, you can not do anything about it," said Tajiri, who answers dozens of calls a day in Honolulu. "It's first come, first served."
The Lovell florist and nursery in Medford, Mass., Used a mix of suppliers from Canada, North Carolina and the West Coast, the regular wholesaler can not deliver, said owner LaVerne Lovell . They expected their last 1,000 trees to be delivered on Friday.
"It was about two days of total panic," she recalls. "The Christmas season carries us through the winter, so if we had no trees, it would have been a nightmare."
The American Legion in Dover, Mass., Also had to search for 450 trees for its annual fundraiser. "It's getting difficult," said Tom McGill, who oversees the effort.
The problems of supply and demand are not new. Like other crops, Christmas trees are a commodity that runs through cycles ranging from too few trees to oversupply.
But regional factors also exacerbate the problem.
For example, spring frost damaged trees on some farms in Nova Scotia, stifling supply in the northeast. Some Canadian farms in New Brunswick are buried under the snow of recent storms, which prevents them from transporting trees in trucks for shipping.
A shortage of Fraser trees, the most popular on the East Coast, has prompted some buyers in North Carolina to look for balsam fir in New England. In Oregon, some people take Fraser Fir from the east instead of the noble fir trees that are the most popular trees on the west coast.
"The supply and demand seem to always fluctuate," said Chal Landgren, a specialist in Christmas trees and a professor at Oregon State University.
In total, US consumers should buy about 27 million trees, about the same as the last two years, according to the National Christmas Tree Association.
Most people will find what they want, but prices could be a bit higher than the average retail price of about $ 75 last year, said Tim O. Connor, director of the association.
With a lighter offer, buyers may want to start early if they want a lot of choice and variety.
Spencer Putman, of Weybridge, Vermont, did not worry about a purchase. He simply paid $ 5 for a permit to cut his own tree in the 400,000-acre Green Mountain National Forest. "I do not think we will soon miss it," he said.
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Associated Press editors David Sharp in Portland, Maine and Wilson Ring in Montpellier contributed to this report.
(Copyright 2018 The Associated Press Inc. All rights reserved This document may not be published, disseminated, rewritten or redistributed.)
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