LOCKPORT, N.Y. — Trees have been up since the day after Thanksgiving (at least for a majority of Americans). But national trends are showing more and more trees aren't coming out of boxes, they're coming out of the ground!
The rise in buying local, Christmas trees included, has seen an increased during the pandemic. More people have stepped up to show support to small businesses in need of revenue in order to stay afloat.
Tim Buhr is the owner of "Tim Buhr's' Christmas Trees" in Lockport and says as of today he's down to 27 pre-cut trees — he started with 260.
"I think this year we're going to be somewhere around 740 trees sold in total between you-cut and pre-cut trees," Buhr says.
Last week, because of the high demand, Buhr decided to close down his seven-acre you-cut lot and is now focusing on selling roadside, but he doesn't anticipate he and his team will be out there much longer.
"It's been a positive season for people who run roadside markets or Christmas tree operations like my own, the public has come out in support of these events," Buhr says.
Buhr's farm isn't the only one expecting to close early this year, several other farms out in Niagara County are either already closed or shortening their hours due to the increase in demand.
"The you-cut, pre-cut business as a whole has increased over the last several years not just for myself but for other tree growers here in Niagara County," Buhr said.
Buhr tells 2 On Your Side, families are still looking to hold on to whatever traditions they can during this tough time, and for many, picking out a Christmas tree is one of them.
"We have a lot of people this year that said this was their first year of buying a live tree, they want to go out and experience something outdoors," Buhr said.
While many businesses are still struggling to get by, for Christmas tree farms, the numbers and trajectory is looking good — for the near future at least.