'Shop early': US Christmas trees supplies tight, prices up

CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) — Customers searching for the perfect Christmas tree typically glance at Sandy Parsons’ limited offerings, then keep walking.

Parsons never got her order for 350 trees from a North Carolina farm. Supplies were short, she was told. Instead, she was shipped some smaller ones for her lot at the Capitol Market in Charleston. Those paled in comparison to the much taller beauties at a competitor’s lot next door.

“This has been the worst season,” Parsons said. “We lost a lot of money by that. It sets you back two or three years.”

Christmas tree supplies are tight again this year across the United States, depending upon location and seller. The industry is still bouncing back from the Great Recession and trying to win people back from a shift toward artificial trees when times were especially tough.

Industry officials say not to worry: Everyone who wants a last-minute tree should be able to find one. It just might take a little more searching, especially if customers want a specific type, and you might have to pay a little more.

The best advice, said Amy Start, executive director of the Michigan Christmas Tree Association, is simple: “Shop early.”

Parsons has been in business for 42 years as a seasonal seller of flowers, produce, pumpkins — and this year, just 32 Christmas trees.

“I can tell you how many I didn’t buy: 350,” said Parsons, whose disappointment has been tempered by robust wreath sales.

In the next lot, Robert Cole was having a jolly ole time preparing an abundance of trees for loading onto customers’ vehicles.

The difference? Cole’s lot, French Creek Farms of Buckhannon, grows its own trees.

“We’ve been busier than we’ve ever been before,” Cole said.

Gesturing toward the lots of Parsons and another...