T. S. Isaac Could Help Christmas Tree Farms
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BEECH BLUFF, TENN.- The summer drought has taken a toll on Christmas Tree farms in West Tennessee. The lack of rain has stunted the growth of the trees that were planted in January. “We lost probably 65% of the trees I planted. The white pine I planted this year which will leave a gap eight to ten years from now since it takes eight to ten years to grow up to be a Christmas tree,” said Christmas tree farm owner Roy Ward. Ward will plant 3,000 seedlings this coming January to make up for the lost trees. He usually plants 1,500 seedlings a year. The trees chopped down this year will be fine. The bigger trees were able to deal with the lack of rain and the heat much better than the trees planted this year. Ward said, “The big trees have a more spread out root system. They have the ability to go deeper into the ground water.” Local growers are counting on Isaac to provide much needed rain for the trees. Ward Grove Christmas Tree Farm in Beech Bluff grows 600 trees on ten acres all devoted to Christmas Trees. The business started over 25 years ago. The smaller trees take between five to seven years to grow and the larger ones between seven and ten years to grow. “It’s very difficult. You have to mow between rows. You have to take care of weeds between trees. It’s an all year long job, not just at Christmas,” said Ward.
