The most beautiful and fresh pine trees are available at farmers’ fairs this year

(Photo: NAK)

Only a few weeks left and the first pine tree sellers will appear in the markets and squares. Although the drought has also been felt by domestic pine tree plantations – the drought has caused problems primarily for smaller pine trees -, there is no need to worry about a shortage this year either. Domestic producers are waiting for customers with an abundant supply this year as well. In our country, pine trees are grown on about three thousand hectares, mainly in Vas, Zala, and Somogy counties, but many people are also involved in this activity in the Northern Central Mountains – around the Mátra and Bükk Mountains – and in Nógrád County. According to the joint overview of the National Chamber of Agriculture and the Hungarian Interprofessional Organization of Ornamental Gardeners, the selection continues to include spruce, Nordmann fir, Colorado fir (Abies concolor), which has the best scent, long-needle black fir, and silver fir, although less of the latter is being sold on the market every year. The reason for this is that the needles of the silver fir are prickly, so families with small children do not like it. But if we ignore this, it makes up for it with its beautiful blue color and durability.

While a few decades ago, the most common choice of buyers was spruce, today the demand has significantly shifted towards Nordmann

This pine species native to the Caucasus has a regular shape, an attractive shape, dark green foliage, soft, dull, non-spiky shiny needles, 3-4 cm long, and do not fall off. It retains its needles for months even in warm apartments. In Hungary, 1.8-2 million pine trees are planted annually in the pre-Christmas period, about 80 percent of which are Nordmann pine trees. Although the majority of Nordmann pine trees used to be imported, domestically grown trees now dominate the market. Their quality is close to that of foreign pine trees, thanks to the use of uniform and high-quality propagation material and cultivation technology. Buyers who want their homes to be filled with a characteristic pine scent during the holiday season should feel free to choose spruce. In a cooler room, away from the stove or radiator, this variety can also last until the end of the holiday, or you can look for the more durable and even more intense pine scented Colorado pine.

Whatever variety you choose, the most important thing is to buy the pine tree, which is considered the centerpiece of the Christmas holiday, from a reliable place, preferably from a producer

Producers appear in almost every town in the country every year with their offerings. Pine fairs typically start in early December and last until Christmas Eve. However, it is not worth postponing the purchase, as you can still choose the right pine tree from a wide selection in the first days of December. After purchasing, it is worth keeping the tree in a cool place – on a terrace, balcony, garage or basement – ​​but it is not necessary to put it in water, since the cut tree no longer absorbs water at this time. In some retail outlets, we can still find ground ball pines, but demand has decreased dramatically in this segment in recent years. Previously, many people chose this type so that they could enjoy the pine in their garden after Christmas, but after planting it, they were disappointed.

The reason for this is that the pines are not “trained” in Christmas tree plantations and are not transplanted at appropriate intervals, so the ground ball cannot develop a sufficient root system

For this reason, planting it is extremely risky and is usually unsuccessful. Experts therefore advise that we choose a cut pine as a Christmas tree and decorate our garden with a trained ground ball pine planted in the spring, purchased from a nursery.

In addition to live pine trees, the range of artificial pine trees is also becoming wider, and today customers can also find almost completely lifelike products, but their prices are quite expensive

To this day, many people believe that artificial pine trees protect the environment, but this misconception has long been dispelled. The cut pine trees do not come from deforestation, but from plantations planted for this purpose, and they produce oxygen, while the production of artificial pine trees causes a serious environmental burden. Most artificial pine trees come from China, so their ecological footprint is extremely large. Moreover, according to experience, customers discard them after 5-6 years, while an artificial pine tree should be used year after year for at least 20 years to be a truly environmentally friendly alternative.

NAK