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MSU Christmas tree team helps Mich. tree growers

November 26, 2012
	<p>From left, Jackson residents Les Shearer and Mary Shearer look for the perfect Christmas tree Monday, Nov. 26, 2012, at Watson Tree Farms&#8217; lot located in the Meijer parking lot, 2055 W. Grand River Ave. Watson Tree Farms works with <span class="caps">MSU</span> all year-round helping with tree care. Adam Toolin/The State News</p>

From left, Jackson residents Les Shearer and Mary Shearer look for the perfect Christmas tree Monday, Nov. 26, 2012, at Watson Tree Farms’ lot located in the Meijer parking lot, 2055 W. Grand River Ave. Watson Tree Farms works with MSU all year-round helping with tree care. Adam Toolin/The State News

Photo by Adam Toolin | The State News

Across the state, Michigan tree growers just completed one of their busiest weeks — the week of Thanksgiving, when they prepare their trees to be sold across the country — and likely won’t see a break until after the holidays.

But the trees just don’t appear overnight, and many Michigan tree growers seek help from MSU’s Christmas Tree Area of Expertise Team, or Christmas Tree AoE, as they care for trees on their farms year-round, said Marsha Gray, executive director of the Michigan Christmas Tree Association.

Michigan is the third-largest tree-growing state and exports pines across the U.S., Gray said.

“We are a large player and what you would call an export state in that a lot of the trees we harvest here are sent to other states; that’s why our partnership with MSU is so important,” Gray said.
Members of the Department of Forestry at MSU make up the Christmas Tree AoE, which provides support for Christmas tree growers and is available for advising year-round.

MSU experts are on call to answer questions about tree farming and several instructors present their research on tree growth each summer at Michigan Christmas Tree Association meetings.

Christmas Tree AoE specialist and associate professor in the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources Bert Cregg said specialists talk to growers about pest management, fertilization techniques and ways to enrich the land, and they probably talk with at least a dozen growers on a weekly basis.

“This work is really trying to help the growers be better stewards so they can produce their trees and have as little environmental impact as possible,” Cregg said. “It helps them to be better environmental stewards; hopefully it also saves them money.”

Ron Watson, owner of Watson Tree Farms in Missaukee County, currently is selling some of his Christmas trees at a booth at the Meijer parking lot in Okemos.

Watson sells about 50,000 trees each year through wholesale in Michigan and states along the Gulf Coast, he said, adding his farm also has been serving Greater Lansing at booths for 44 years.
Watson’s farm calls the Christmas Tree AoE to talk about growing techniques each summer.

“We work hand in hand using our knowledge with their knowledge,” Watson said.

Forestry senior Ryan Hauser-Jeryc, president of the MSU Forestry Club, said helping the community through advising and answering questions is one of the Department of Forestry’s major strengths.

“It is nice to be able to help,” Hauser-Jeryc said. “Part of the reason I got into forestry is because I don’t want to see all of the forests be cut down with nothing replanted.”

For Hauser-Jeryc, Christmas would not be complete without the trees he cuts down himself — a tradition his family has had his whole life.

“Having a fresh evergreen tree in the house makes it smell like Christmas,” he said.

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