THORNTOWN — If you have not already bought your Christmas tree this holiday season, it could be harder to find and cost you more.

That is because Christmas trees are a matter of supply and demand and this year there supply is less than the demand. Prices across the nation could be up as much as 5 to 10 percent in big box stores.

The reason for this dates all the way back to the Great Recession almost 10 years ago.

“There were less trees bought which means less harvested so those trees weren’t replanted. So those trees continue to grow and grow and eventually they become a size where they’re just not marketable,” said Vice-President of Indiana Farm Bureau Kendell Culp.

Fortunately for Hoosiers, Indiana Farm Bureau stated most tree farmers in the state have not had supply and demand issues and have not had to make drastic changes to their prices.

Dull’s Tree Farm in Thorntown is in their 25th year of selling trees.

“In those 25 years, every year we have sold more trees than the year before so we’re in a steady incline,” said Owner Tom Dull.

He said for every tree that is cut down, they plant another one or two the following spring.

“Last year we reached about 5,000 trees sold and we’re on a schedule to beat that this year. It’s grown way beyond what we ever thought it,” Dull added.

Dull said the business has been going so well that in the last few years they have expanded to pumpkins and corn mazes. During the summer, the farm grows corn and soybeans.

“The real Christmas tree, is the environmentally friendly choice, that’s the one you want to choose. They are renewable, they are recycable,” he said.

Each year about 25 to 30 million real trees are sold in the U.S., according to the National Christmas Tree Association. 

For a list of Indiana Christmas Tree Farms, click here.

Source: WISH