Fairfield County Tops Nation In Christmas Tree Prices

GREENWICH (AP) — It costs more money to buy many things in Fairfield County compared with the rest of the state, and Christmas trees are no exception.

Growers say the average price for a tree is $50 to $60 along Connecticut’s Gold Coast, while trees in other areas of the state typically sell for about $30.

That is why Fairfield County ranks tops in the nation for Christmas tree sales, according to a  survey of farm operators by the US Department of Agriculture.

“Fairfield County gets the most money for its Christmas trees,’’ said Kathy Kogut, executive director of the Connecticut Christmas Tree Growers Association.

At Sam Bridge Nursery in Greenwich, tree prices reach as high as $500 for a North Carolina-grown Fraser fir tree. But that hefty price tag also gets customers delivery and installation for the trees, which can be up to 16 feet high.

“There’s a lot of manpower involved in it,’’ Sam Bridge III said.

The demand for trees in Connecticut is typically greater than the 95,000 trees it grows. That means that many growers import trees from out of state or the country.

In Old Greenwich, the First Congregational Church’s tree stand has already been dismantled, because all its 600 trees were sold. Betsy Kreuter, who organized the volunteer sale for the church, said prices went as high as $70 for an 8- or 9-foot basalm tree brought in from Canada.

But while imported trees can be glamorous, some Connecticut growers are saying the best quality can be found on state soil. Connecticut Christmas trees, which take eight to 14 years to grow, last longer than those cut weeks earlier to be imported.

“If the needles snap instead of bend, you have a pretty good chance that it’s been cut a long time,’’ said Ron Olsen, a marketing representative for the state Department of Agriculture and a Christmas tree grower from Voluntown.