East End Christmas farms feeling quite jolly about a tree-mendous sales year

The effects of a nationwide Christmas tree boom are being felt at the family-run farms on the North Fork, which are reporting their lots and fields were picked clean of the good trees earlier than ever this year.

Farmers cite many reasons for this year’s strong sales: an influx of residents on the East End; families spending the holidays apart and thus needing more trees; a desire to spend time outdoors; and people desperate for some holiday cheer during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Stacey Soloviev, whose family owns Santa’s Christmas Tree Farm in Cutchogue, estimates total sales, which include food and merchandise, are quadruple last year’s tally.

And those hoping for a ceiling scraping tree this year would had to have acted fast, she said. A dozen precut trees remained on the farm Monday, all under 6 feet tall, with more rows of tiny tannenbaums growing in the field. She estimated 100 precut trees were left over at the end of last season.

"I had probably 25 guys working outside and we couldn’t keep up with the demand," said Soloviev, adding that about 3,000 trees have been sold this year. "It was really unbelievable. We had to do overflow parking down the road and shuttle people over."

Visiting the farm is also one of the few activities available for families this season, with an ice-skating rink, farm animals and photos with a Santa wearing a clear plastic mask among the options.

Matt Marple, owner of Matt’s Christmas Tree Farm in Manorville, said the farm always sells out of 7- and 8-footers, usually by the third weekend in December. This year that date arrived early — the stock was gone by December’s first weekend.

He said he noticed a lot of first-timers in the field. Many more were asking directions on how to cut down a tree and how to care for it once they got home, Marple said.

"We did have a big, big increase and I think that was all people who were just pent-up inside," Marple said. "And this was the perfect opportunity to be outside and social distance."

Limited acreage to grow a seven-or-so-year crop and varieties that don’t take to Long Island soil are reasons why growers will supplement with trees shipped from out-of-state farms. But local farmers like Joe Shipman, whose family owns Shamrock Christmas Tree Farm in Mattituck, said his suppliers’ farms have also run low.

Shipman said Black Friday may have been his farm’s busiest day in its more than 30-year history. Adding to the farm’s popularity is that it expanded its offerings in recent years, offering a firepit and local vendors selling wine, pickles, potato chips and more.

At Shamrock, the smaller trees cost about $65 and the bigger ones run about $85, according to Shipman. He said the business does not tally up its sales until January or February, but early evidence points to a banner year. He had about nine precut trees left on Monday, none over 6 feet tall.

"People were spending money, they didn’t even flinch," Shipman said. "Nobody argued with you. They just wanted to get what they wanted."

By Vera Chinese

vera.chinese@newsday.com@VeraChinese

Vera Chinese joined Newsday in 2017 after working as an editor for the East End lifestyle publication northforker and a general assignment reporter for the New York Daily News.