Nova Scotia is facing a potential Christmas tree shortage this year.
Gretchen Gerhardt of Dale Forestry says many trees were lost or badly damaged due to an early frost this fall.
“All the tips turned brown, so most farmers lost like half of their crop of trees. If they wanted to, they had to go in and repay staff to shear them twice, which is unusual,” she says.
Gerhardt says reshearing crops is an expensive last resort, and it can result in a loss of quality.
She says, “It’s quite a costly process to send your people back to the woods to shear them, and then when you shear them again you have tips that some customers aren’t fussy about, so that makes it harder too. It’s been a tricky year for the industry of trees, for sure.”
She says she’s hopeful crops will recover for next year.
Gerhardt says while the South Shore region should be fine, she’s advising people to get their Christmas trees sooner rather than later to avoid disappointment.
Story by Erin MacInnis
Twitter: @ErinEMacInnis