Ohio Christmas Tree Producers Manual

Bulletin 670

Harvesting the Christmas Tree Crop

Harvest of the Christmas tree crop should be planned and carried out as carefully as other management procedures discussed in the previous sections. Unless trees are harvested properly, they may not reach the buyer in good condition.

Size and shape of trees rather than age determine the year they are to be harvested. Rate of growth may vary considerably depending on species, site quality and cultural practices. If there is a market for small 3- to 4-foot "table" trees or small balled live trees, harvest may begin four or five years after planting. However, demand is generally greatest for trees 5 feet or greater in height, and this height is usually not reached until six to eight years after planting.

When trees reach marketable size, a detailed inventory should be made of those that will be available for sale in a particular year. An excellent time to make this inventory is immediately after completion of shearing. This provides accurate information that can be used to answer inquiries from potential buyers, which may begin in July or August. Most trees are sold on the basis of size and quality, and trees to be harvested should be tagged to reflect those factors. The U.S. Department of Agriculture has developed a set of standards for grades of Christmas trees (Table 7) that can be used. More commonly, growers develop their own "grades" to reflect quality of trees in their plantings. Many growers use different colored tags or plastic flagging to indicate size and/or quality.

Tree freshness is an important factor affecting marketability. The time between harvest and final sale should be as short as possible. Obviously, the freshest tree would be one harvested the day before it is brought into the home. In most cases, this is not possible. Harvest for shipment to out-of-state markets must begin earlier in order to get trees to their destinations for retail sales, which commonly begin in late November or early December.

Harvesting of balled, live trees may begin after completion of growth in late August or early September if soil moisture conditions are favorable. These can be harvested earlier because trees are dug by hand or machine (Fig. 51) with part of their roots intact. After digging, balls are wrapped in burlap (Fig. 52). Trees can be kept alive by periodic watering of the balls. As noted in the section on plantation layout, additional space is usually needed between rows if trees are to be machine dug.

Harvesting cut trees for shipment to out-of-state markets may begin in late October or early November. Such early harvesting may also be desirable to avoid adverse weather conditions that often occur in late November and early December. Cutting for sales to local markets can often be delayed. It is particularly important to delay harvest of the spruces (particularly Norway and white) as late as possible, because, as noted in the section on species selection, needle retention on cut trees of those species is very poor.

Fig. 51: Digging a balled tree using a mechanical digger.	Fig. 52: Balled-and-burlapped tree after digging.

Trees can be cut using any of several different types of saws (Fig. 53). Small hand bowsaws or pruning saws may be suitable for small operations. Small gasoline powered chain saws are generally faster and more efficient. One of the more popular saws for harvesting is a power driven circular saw mounted on the end of a wand or boom. This enables the cutter to remain upright during cutting. Circular saws mounted on the front of small, walk-behind tractors such as those used for mowing are also efficient for cutting trees. Examples of relative time required for cutting trees using different methods are presented in Table 9.

Fig. 53: Various types of saws used for harvesting trees.

Following cutting, trees are moved to roadways (see section "Plantation Subdivision into Planting Blocks") for baling and movement to storage or shipment areas. Attempting to move and store any quantity of trees without some type of tying or baling greatly increases handling costs and may also increase possibilities of damage to trees. A number of different types of balers are available commercially (Figs. 54 and 55). Trees are usually compressed by mechanical arms or as they pass through a cone- shaped device. They are then tied or covered with plastic netting. After such baling, trees stack much more closely for storage and shipment (Fig. 56).

Fig. 54: Self-propelled ``clamp" type twine baler used for bundling Christmas trees.	Fig. 55: "Cone" type twine baler used for bundling trees.	Fig. 56: 1) unbaled Scotch pine; 2) baled Scotch pine; 3) unbaled white pine and 4) baled white pine.

After cutting, regardless of the time period, trees should be stored properly until they are shipped or sold. Low temperature, high humidity and protection from sun and wind are desirable for keeping trees fresh after cutting. An old building or shed is ideal for this purpose. Storage under older conifer stands may also provide good conditions. Occasional spraying helps retain tree freshness. Tests indicate that needles having a moisture content of 100 percent or more do not support combustion.

Transport to markets is most commonly done by truck. As noted previously, it is much easier to load and pack baled trees. At least twice as many baled as opposed to unbaled trees can be loaded in the same space. Some type of conveyor or elevator can be very helpful, particularly if larger vehicles are to be loaded.