Florence may impact future Christmas tree crops in North Carolina

WILMINGTON, NC (WWAY) — We are almost a month away from Christmas. North Carolina farmers are bringing in their best selection to the Cape Fear, but did Hurricane Florence impact their supply?

The Barr Evergreens Farm in the mountains of Crumpler was flooded during and after the storm, bringing an end to planting seeds.

Plot Manager Brad Jordan says Florence did not impact this season’s trees but, it could affect supplies 10 years from now.

“From seed to one foot tall it takes approximately 3 years to grow to a foot tall,” Jordan said. “From there it grows to about a foot a year so say your average 7 or 8 ft tree is going to be about 11 years old.”

Their lot on Shipyard Boulevard in Wilmington has 600 trees on display from two to 18 feet tall.

He says 10 years ago they had a shortage of seedlings so they do have fewer trees for sale this year.