Tree farmers

Tree farmers

see green season

Rappahannock’s Christmas tree growers are hoping for a good year this season.

For some of them last year, with snow on the back roads during both of the busiest weekends for customers, was a disaster.

One who had success last year is the county’s first grower to plant Christmas trees for the cut-your-own business. Amissville resident William Keim said that he normally only sells one weekend a year. When the road was ice-covered last year, he decided not to open. He put . a chain across his driveway and a sign that said he would sell to customers with four-wheel drive vehicles only. He sent his assistants home.

By Sunday the roadside was lined up with parked cars and his customers walked in to purchase their trees from Quail Call Farm. He sold over 400 trees that day.

Capt. Keim says he has not advertised for years, and about three years ago he decided to cut his business back by no longer sending out notices to customers on his mailing list. However, loyal customers know he is normally open the second weekend in December and they keep coming, he said.

He said he now has children and grandchildren of his original customers coming. “They are nice people who have been our customers for years,*’ he said. “They come from all over the state.”

Capt. Keim said he used to sell three times as many trees as he is selling now. He decided to cut back because “help is going down in quality and quantity,” he said. He continues to plant trees, but fewer than in earlier years. He sells white and Scotch pine, Norway and blue spruce and frazer fir. He will again be open for business the first weekend of December next year.

Barney O’Meara said that this year is much better than last. His location, on Route 607 between Woodville and Slate Mills, involves several miles of back country roads, so he has to make up in marketing for what he lacks in location.

He said that he thought the early Thanksgiving this

See TREES, p. A-6