By Jeff Tribe

It was a grey, early-November day just south of Woodstock, what old-timers might have referred to as a raw north-western breeze embedded with a miserable hint of chilly drizzle.
    But with an evergreen tree shaker and bagger out and ready to go, a wooden boxful of “pots” to hold previously-cut options in a vertical position, a few smaller live, potted evergreens, and most importantly of all, a little imagination, it was beginning to look a lot more like Christmas around Vanderklooster’s Christmas Trees, a you-cut operation.
    “It is, it’s stressful,” admitted Vanderklooster of the beginnings of his own advanced pre-Christmas rush. “But when it all comes together, it’s worth it.”
    It would be another two-and-a-half weeks before the short yet intense Vanderklooster Christmas Tree season. Some larger operations began cutting trees in mid-October, destined for export to Qatar in refrigerated shipping containers. Vanderklooster dovetails with the Canadian market – Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. from the last weekend of November on through to Christmas. But knowing full well that weather can be an issue, Vanderklooster had started a couple of weeks ago.
    A lot of work remained for the ensuing 17 days prior to opening, mounting local signage, website updating, a touch-up paint job for a decorative cutter, and clearing a weight-workout-machine out from the west end of the 40-by-12-foot customer-service area of the barn. Finished in rustic pine boards sawn by members of the local Amish community, it housed hot cider and customer checkout stations decorated by metallic signs, the latter purchased as a gift by friends during a trip south of the border.
    “It’s perfect,” smiled Vanderklooster, able to imagine the sweet smells of cider and evergreen boughs and trees against the aural backdrop of cheerful customer chatter and Christmas music played on indoor and outdoor speakers. “And the walls will all be covered with wreaths.”
    It took more than a little imagination and long-term vision to see viable agricultural potential in a nine-acre property the Vanderklooster family purchased along Substation Road in 1996. Arguably too big to simply cut grass on, the property was also arguably smaller than enough to pencil out the purchase of a 150-HP tractor and combine with a four-row corn head.
    Mike’s answer came via the industry exit of an area you-cut operation, both sparking interest and opening a door of opportunity. To be clear, while Vanderklooster’s heritage would suggest fiscally-responsible choices with decent potential, Christmas trees are not a get-rich-quick scheme by any means. Although the discussion risks opening debate between he and his spouse, a reasonable best-case scenario for return on investment through mature trees would be seven to eight years, a considerable period of sinking money into the ground without expectation of payback. Once you get things rolling, it can be profitable, he says. However, the opportunity to combine yuletide dollars and cents also occurs in weather conditions defined by that season.
    “My wife asked me if I couldn’t have picked something in the summer,” Vanderklooster laughed. 
    There is also the reality that adding too much assistance to a labour-intensive operation can have a gross effect on net returns, particularly for a small operation.
    “If you want to do it, you have to love doing it,” he explained. “It’s a hobby.”
    His initial 1997 plantation featured trees readily available from the St. Williams Nursery, a spruce base which has been diversified to meet customer preference. His “system” featured a family member on a shovel followed up with an equally rudimentary planting and covering approach. Spaced five feet apart in rows six feet apart, he follows a 1,200-tree-per-acre grid, hand irrigated via a water tank and five-gallon pails. Fertilizer is a thing best applied gently and cautiously on soil tested and adjusted to pH-finicky evergreens. Weeding is accomplished through the combination of grass-cutting and “rounding up” unwelcome interlopers in the rows with the help of a hand-held pump sprayer, which Vanderklooster prefers for precise application. He approaches disease and pest control as naturally as possible.
    “It’s work,” Vanderklooster summed up succinctly of what is a shrinking industry for a variety of factors. Consider the price of land against Christmas tree farming’s delayed return, holiday-season commitment, customer service and insurance considerations, and the hands-on requirements ( manual labour in other words) and it’s understandable why subsequent generations may be reluctant to extend family traditions.
    “Or just like everyone else, kids grow up in a lifestyle and go, “I’m not doing that.”
    Vanderklooster is a director with the Christmas Tree Farmers of Ontario (CTFO), a non-profit association providing information for both tree growers and consumers. He contributed to its new growers program, promoting Christmas tree farming as a rewarding full or part-time occupation. The rationale of not only welcoming but educating potential competitors is maintaining a healthy industry based on quality trees, sustaining demand for natural versus artificial options.
    The rotational nature of Christmas tree farming, replacing cut specimens with replacement seedlings throughout an age-diverse plantation is among its environmental benefits. The practice consistently removes carbon-dioxide from the atmosphere while maintaining habitat which increases biodiversity among both birds and animals.
    The CTFO website (christmastrees.on.ca) offers information on Christmas tree care, along with widely-practiced ancient origins dating back to seasonal pagan celebrations held around the winter solstice. Those were converted to Christian-based celebrations 400 years ago in Germany, the first recorded Canadian Christmas tree courtesy of a German immigrant in Sorel, Quebec in 1781. The second was recorded in Halifax in 1846, and the tradition quickly spread. 
    In the comparative absence of druids, Vikings and 14th century “miracle plays”, Christmas trees today have become a valued and celebrated family tradition. The CTFO website helps the process along with a locator, identifying individual farms and providing directions to their operational locations.
    Vanderklooster says people seem to enjoy the shared activity of selecting their own tree as a family, whether that be a pre-cut or you-cut alternative. His busiest years were through the COVID-19 pandemic, people looking to get out and find some sense of normalcy.
    As in many things, Christmas tree beauty differs in the eyes of varying beholders. Initially, Vanderklooster’s hand trimming (begun in the third or fourth season of growth) strove for balanced perfection, ultimately he realized a majority of customers preferred a more natural approach.
    There are different options for pre-cut trees but Vanderklooster takes a one price fits all sizes for you-cuts, simplifying operations at checkout. It’s rare, he says, for people to complain. The spirit of the season seems to percolate through the selection process.
    In closing, Vanderklooster conceded natural Christmas trees aren’t for everyone, but as the saying goes, those who love them - perhaps combined with the tradition that goes with them - love them a lot.
    “They seem to enjoy picking out their very own real Christmas tree. And it’s been our pleasure to share that with a lot of people in this area over the past 25 years.” ◊