Amazon is planning to sell and ship real Christmas trees this year
Nov 23, 2018, 6:03 AM
A man walks among surplus Christmas trees flanking a sidewalk on Monday, Dec. 28, 2015, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)
(AP Photo/Matt Rourke)
SALT LAKE CITY — Amazon is about to disrupt Christmas.
Amazon plans to sell and ship fresh, full-size Christmas trees beginning this holiday season, according to the Associated Press.
The trees, which include Douglas firs and Norfolk Island pines, will be shipped within 10 days of being cut down, or even sooner, depending on the order. The trees should arrive without breaking.
The trees will be bound and shipped without water, however.
Amazon said it plans to put trees, wreaths and garlands on sale, beginning in November.
Some of the trees will come with free shipping for Amazon Prime customers.
So what will the costs look like? You can buy a 7-foot tree from a North Carolina farm for $115.
Tim O’Connor, the executive director of the National Christmas Tree Association, told the AP that families enjoy heading out to farms to pick out and cut down their own trees.
However, Amazon is filling a vacuum left by the disappearance of Christmas trees.
As I reported on last year, droughts and wildfires across the country left farms without Christmas trees. In fact, Oregon and North Carolina farmers said they saw fewer trees in 2017 than in years past.
Another reason — the economy. Christmas trees being sold today were initially planted 10 years ago, when there was less demand for trees, meaning that fewer trees were planted that year, according to WSMV-TV, a Nashville news outlet.
“Now that the economy has bounced back and more people plan to buy Christmas trees again, we’re left with a high demand for trees, and a low supply — meaning tree prices are expected to go up,” according to WSMV-TV.
Regardless of where you choose to buy your tree, you’ll want to be mindful of when you buy it. Quartz reported last year that you’ll pay less for a Christmas tree the closer you get to Christmas.
Christmas trees cost close to $66 around Black Friday but drop down to $30 around Christmas Eve.
“Buying a tree two weeks earlier also means two extra weeks of twinkling Christmas lights and the aroma of pine in your living room,” according to Quartz. “So a tree’s price isn’t just a reflection of quality, but also of a premium placed on the ‘Christmas spirit’ that comes with it.”
