|
"Oh, Christmas Tree" Means Work for Student Farmer
Story by Elizabeth Gunderson
Photos by Virginia Tomlinson
Frasier Fir ready for the tinsel
|
Amanda Tomlinson, AKA Muskrat, doesn't live in just the normal neighborhood. She actually lives on a Christmas Tree Farm. Busy all year long, Muskrat and her family plan for Christmas time. Their wreaths are a big seller at Mars Hill College, with 22 of them hanging in various places on campus this season. And one of their trees stands on the third floor of Blackwell.
Their family farm is located in Fleetwood of Ashe County, North Carolina. It's about two hours from Mars Hill, near Boone, N.C.
"Most of the farms are on the side of a mountain, and therefore we have an awesome view," she said. "There is nothing as amazing as taking a break and looking off into the sunset and seeing all the snow covered mountains. You can feel the cool mountain air flowing through the fields, and you can smell the awesome scent of the trees. There are no words that I can say to really tell you the life of a Christmas Tree Farmer. You just have to experience it for yourself!"
Her parents were both working in Boone before owning the tree farm. Then her dad decided that they needed an extra way of earning money for their children's college educations. He started the farm by planting some seedlings at the top of their garden, which is behind the house. "It all just started as something extra to do on the side," said Muskrat.
Her parents have owned the business and the land for about 25 years now.
The family sells mostly Frasier Fir trees, but they also sell White Pine, Blue Spruce and Hemlock trees.
Seven years to harvest
|
When asked on average how many trees they sell a year, Muskrat answered, "too many to count!" She did say that the number varies from year to year.
The farm has about the same customers each year, but the family always welcomes new ones. Muskrat's farm is a "choose and cut" farm, which means that the customers walk about the fields and tag the tree that they want. After choosing, Muskrat's dad cuts the tree down, bails it, and loads it onto the customer's car.
They usually sell more Christmas trees than wreaths.
The Northwestern Mountains of North Carolina have been characterized as "Christmas Tree Country." For many of the counties here, Christmas Tree Farming is the largest business. So there is quite a lot of competition.
"There is always work to be done year round," says Muskrat. "Many people think that after they plant the seedlings they are done, but they're wrong. Tree work is very hard work." There is shearing to do to make the trees look as pretty as possible for sale. Shearing is done in the summer and sometimes in the early fall. The trees must also be fertilized. To do this, you carry a heavy pack of liquid on your back while walking through the fields and spraying all the "nasty weeds" that grow between the rows of trees. "These are just a few things we go through. There are so many more steps that it would take an entire book to describe how to do this work."
Cutting a tree with dad
|
It takes a tree anywhere from seven to ten years to grow before you can sell it. "The taller the tree, the longer you will have to wait. Patience is very important!"
Muskrat has worked on campus for three years in the admissions office with data entry. She has brought Christmas decorations to the campus for about two years. This year she decided to bring up a Christmas tree along with the wreaths.
The Christmas tree brought up this year is located on the third floor of Blackwell. The Log Cabin, Marshbanks, Blackwell, Wren Student Union, Renfroe Library, and Wall Science Building all hold wreaths of hers. "We aren't biased as to who can buy what."
Students also are able to buy from Muskrat and her family's farm. "If you want a wreath or tree, come by, place an order, pay us the required amount and you can have your order."
Cutting tips for wreath-making
|
The wreaths come in three sizes: Small, $7; Medium, $8; and Large, $9. The prices of trees vary by type and size. Most common are the Frasier Firs, which cost $20 for up to seven feet. "The trees that are larger will cost more."
Muskrat has been working on the tree farm ever since she was very little. "I may not have been that strong physically, but there were still jobs that I could do to help out. I remember times when I was really young, cutting tips for mom's wreaths, or dragging trees or doing something with the tree bailer." She has always done something to help out the family and the farm. "There were times we worked through freezing rain and heavy snow, and even in the summer when we worked through blistering heat. There have been several times that my family and I have worked though the night by spotlight. If there is a deadline, we must meet it."
Muskrat and her mother are the ones that use the wreath machine. Her mom usually makes the wreaths because Muskrat is at school, but she travels home every weekend to do whatever needs to be done to help out her family. She and her dad usually cut the tips in the fields, and her dad mainly cuts the trees, makes roping, deals with the customers, and pretty much runs the business. "We each have our job, but we will help each other out if necessary."
"Thanksgiving is actually the busiest time of the year. There are so many families that want to spend Thanksgiving traveling to get their tree and decorate it." Christmas and Thanksgiving aren't the only busy times during the year, but they are probably the busiest. "This is a year round job." There are different jobs for the different seasons, and there are peak planning times.
Putting tips into the wreath frame
|
Before owning your own tree farm, there are a lot of important things you have to know, Muskrat says. "Most of it comes from experience though."
"It's an amazing life. There are times that it is very stressful and aggravating." She said she has learned many work skills that will be helpful to her where ever she works in the future. She has gained a strong work ethic and has learned never to quit until the job is finished. Tree farming takes a lot of your time, she says, but it is always very interesting.
Some people may wonder how she got the nickname "Muskrat." In the seventh grade she attended a basketball camp at the University of Tennessee and received the name "Mouse" because she was so quick and small. As she grew up, people started calling her "Rat" and then found out that she lived next to a river so they started calling her "Muskrat," which is the name she still goes by today.
At Mars Hill College she is in her fourth year playing softball. She is a business administration major.
Muskrat plans to keep a small number of the Christmas trees, but nothing to the extent of what her dad has. "This is a very hard, stressful, yet fun and interesting business. I don't have any certain plans right now, but there are still many possibilities. I do have the tree farm to fall back on if necessary."
Muskrat with finished wreath
|
HOME
| 
