Come mid-November, Ashe County North Carolina is one of the few places south of the Mason Dixon line where the weather starts to actually feel a little like winter. In the rising elevation of the Blue Ridge Appalachians, Ashe County experiences a unique climate within a southern state. On occasion, there is just enough snow to make you realize the season is a wonderland. Snow dabbles the ground and the roof tops, the fence posts and the landscape.
One of the prettiest things to see are the Christmas trees of Ashe County, furrowed in neat rows on acre upon acre of land combing the hillsides with their deep ever green color. Once the snow has fallen their boughs transform into the picture of the season, real Christmas trees.
Real Christmas trees are the essence of the holiday. No artificial tree can compare to the warmth and presence of a real tree to welcome family and friends into the Christmas celebration. There isn’t a substitute for the fragrance of a real freshly cut pine, no matching the deep rich green of its boughs. There is something about the presence of a sturdy Frasier Fir or White Pine adorned with lights, a tree top angel and ornaments handed down from generations that makes the home a place of wonder for all ages.
Because of its unique climate, the elevated landscape making it always a bit cooler than the rest of the south, Ashe County has become one of the largest producers of Christmas trees in the nation. With more than sixty Christmas tree farms in the county, this region of the Appalachians cultivates some of the best varieties of holiday trees anywhere in the U.S. Ashe County is the largest producer of Frasier Fir east of the Mississippi River. Along with Frasier Fir, the county also produces Canaan and Douglas Fir species as well as White Pine. Many of these gorgeous trees, along with evergreen wreaths and garland, are shipped worldwide.
But many of these beautiful tree farms open to the public and welcome folks into their fields to choose their very own perfect Christmas tree. It’s a little more personal than just sending Dad down to the nearest big chain retailer. The trees are fresh, displayed in their natural state making choosing and cutting your family’s ideal tree a great way to start another holiday tradition.
Each season families gather for a day of “Choose and Cut” where they join at one of Ashe County’s Christmas tree farms and select a perfect tree for the upcoming holiday. It’s an outing. A day when they will put on mittens and warm jackets to hayride through the farm with hot chocolate or apple cider and stroll the rows of trees until the choice is made. It is part of Christmas.
Ashe County Christmas Tree Association offers a brochure on each of its Choose and Cut farms, their dates and hours of operation. Some of the farms are open to the public as early as November 20th and most run operations right up and until Christmas Eve.
Welcome the holidays by coming to Ashe County and finding your family’s favorite Christmas tree. See why this area is so special and such a unique place to enjoy the season.
