Southport Magazine

By Ashley Park

Before the Halloween candy has even cleared the shelves, the Christmas decorations start rolling out, giving us our first dose of the holiday spirit seemingly earlier and earlier every year.  But around here everyone knows it’s not officially the start of the season until the fresh-cut live Christmas trees begin rolling into town from the mountains of North Carolina and finding their way into our living rooms. After a few eggnog-fueled hours of battle with tangled strands of once twinkling lights and the last cherished ornament is hung, nothing symbolizes the kick-off to the holidays quite like the lighting of the beloved Christmas tree. 

For more than 28 years, Jungle Johnny has been providing fresh-cut, NC grown Christmas trees, garland, wreaths, and decor to homes and businesses in Brunswick County. When asked his opinion of what has changed most about the industry in his nearly three decades of delivering Christmas joy, Jungle Johnny noted that people are buying their Christmas trees and getting into the spirit of the holiday weeks earlier than they used to causing many tree retailers to sell out much sooner than people may expect. As Jungle Johnny so perfectly put it, “There no doubt it’s been a challenging few years many for different reasons, and for many people, Christmas invokes positive feelings and memories which helps folks take their mind off the bad stuff going on in the world.” 

Unfortunately, and not likely surprising, there is a little bah humbug to report in that consumers will find almost every facet of celebrating the holidays a bit pricier this year with the Christmas tree being no exception. Whether you prefer a live tree or an artificial tree, you’ll be paying on average of about 10-15 percent more than you did in 2021, thanks to a variety of reasons such as rising prices for diesel and fertilizers, supply-chain issues, a severe summer drought in much of the country and a continued decrease of tree farms and the hard-working farmers that make the magic happen. 

Tina York, co-owner of All In Bloom Garden Center in Southport, said that while desire for fresh-cut, live Christmas trees has seen an uptick in demand since the start of the pandemic, the number of farms that produce them are dwindling year after year. “It comes down to simple economics,” York said. “With the value of real estate on the rise, tree farmers can make more money selling their land than farming it, so new housing developments are growing instead of trees.” 

Christmas tree retailers, like Tina and Jungle Johnny, are proud to sell only NC-grown Christmas trees and  offer a plethora of knowledge when it comes to any and all things Christmas tree related. However, the one thing they won’t divulge are the names of their preferred NC tree farmers and wholesalers with whom they’ve cultivated decades-long relationships to ensure they get their pick of the crop come harvest season. Not all Christmas trees are created equal — just ask Charlie Brown — and you can expect to pay more for quality. 

The National Christmas Tree Association says there are approximately 25-30 million real Christmas trees sold in the U.S. every year. When asked how many trees he brings to Southport each year, Jungle Johnny’s response was simply, “as many as I can possibly get!” Though the exact number may remain a mystery, when your focus is on the highest quality, most beautiful trees grown in NC, you deliver.