The Enormous Use of Christmas Trees. 



BY C. R. TIELOTSON, ACTING CHIEF <)F FOR- 

 EST INVESTIGATIONS, WASHINGTON, I). C. 



The United States consumes annually 

 not less than four million Christmas 

 trees, or about one to every four families. 

 Railroad statistics corroborate this last 

 estimate. Our annual consumption, even 

 at this figure, equals the combined con- 

 sumption of England, Scotland and 

 Wales, and is about 25 per cent, greater 

 than that of Germany. Practically all 

 conifers can be and are used as Christmas 

 trees, but the most popular ones are the 

 firs, spruces and, to a less extent, the 

 pines and cedars. The use of one or an- 

 other evergreen for this purpose depends 

 frequently upon its accessibility, particu- 

 larly in the mountainous sections of the 

 country. Thus, for instance, in Colorado, 

 where fir is abundant but grows at high 

 altitudes and therefore is difficult to get 

 out, the lodgepole pine, growing at the 

 foot of the mountains, and the Douglas 

 fir are more frequently used than the fir. 



The fir is undoubtedly the Christmas 

 tree par excellence, especially in the 

 northwestern and Lake States, on ac- 

 count of its long, horizontally spreading, 

 springy branches, and its deep green and 

 fragrant foliage which persists longer 

 than that of almost any other evergreen. 

 Tn the northeastern and Lake States it is 

 the balsam fir {Abies balsam ea) that fur- 

 nishes the bulk of the Christmas tree 

 trade ; in the South it is the Fraser fir 

 (Abies fraseri) which figures as a 

 Christmas tree but less frequently than 

 other more accessible conifers, since the 

 fir is confined exclusively to the tons of 

 mountains throughout North Carolina 

 and Tennessee. In Colorado and other 

 Rocky Mountain States, fir. though abun- 

 dant, is difficult of access and is used only 

 sporadically, giving its place to lodgepole 

 pine, Douglas fir, and occasionally to En- 

 gelmann spruce. On the Pacific Coast it 

 is principally the white fir (Abies con- 



color) that is used as a Christmas tree. 



The spruces vie with the firs in popu- 

 larity as Christmas trees, but as a rule in 

 the South and West they grow at high 

 altitudes which makes them also difficult 

 to get at, and are therefore subst'tuted by 

 less suitable but more accessible coni- 

 fers. Black spruce is the tree most seen 

 in New York and Philadelphia. Through- 

 out the States of Illinois and Ohio nur- 

 serymen supply the local demand with 

 nursery grown Norway spruce. 



The pines are in great demand for 

 Christmas trees when fir and spruce are 

 not available, or are only to be had at a 

 high price. Throughout Maryland, Vir- 

 ginia, and in Washington the scrub pine 

 (Pin us Virginia) finds a way into many 

 homes for use in this capacity; while in 

 southern Wyoming the lodgepole pine is 

 almost the only species available for 

 Christmas trees. 



Hemlock, on account of its flexible, 

 drooping branches, is not employed to a 

 great extent as Christmas trees but large 

 quantities of its branches are used in the 

 manufacture of so-called "fancy green," 

 comprising wreaths and other designs. 

 Occasionally a few arborvitae (white 

 cedar) are shipped among firs and spru- 

 ces to New York and Philadelphia mar- 

 kets and used as Christmas trees. 



Red cedar is not despised at this sea- 

 son when nothing better can be had — as 

 in the treeless States ; and, as a matter 

 of fact, it is even used in such States as 

 Tennessee and Pennsylvania. In Cali- 

 fornia it is not uncommon to find incense 

 cedar (Libocednts decurrens) and red- 

 wood used as Christmas trees. 



The center of the Christmas tree indus- 

 try lies in the big cities of the East. New 

 York City and the New England States 

 consumes 1,500,000 trees, or nearly half 

 of all the output. Nowhere does a Christ- 

 mas tree furnish such enjoyment as in 

 the North where its green foliage is so 

 suggestive of summer during the black- 

 days of winter — and especially in big 



