Keep It Real this Holiday Season

“Keep it Real” this Holiday Season with a REAL Farm-Grown Christmas Tree!

2020 has been real crazy and with the holiday season right around the corner, I think we’re all ready to end this year with some good memories. An amazing way to do that is to “keep it real” this Christmas by choosing a REAL farm-grown tree. Cincinnati has some amazing local tree farms, but you can even go to a seasonal lot or retail location – as long as you’re keeping it real.

Real Christmas trees are special, they smell like Christmas, and they bring about some pretty awesome memories. AND, real trees can be at the center of new memories we’re all looking to create after quite a year. Not only are real Christmas trees catalysts for good memories, they are also a smart choice for the environment. Real Christmas trees are grown to be harvested. In fact, for every real Christmas tree harvested another is planted in its place. Finally, buying a real Christmas tree is a way to not only support farmers but to support local businesses, organizations, and their workers. No matter what kind of real Christmas tree you choose (and there are more than 18 different species to choose from), it will be a memory your family cherishes for years to come!

Contributor, Rachel W., and her family LOVE the tradition of choosing a real farm-grown tree, a tradition which sprouted from her own favorite childhood memory.

During childhood, my mother preferred to have an artificial tree. It was a beautiful tree, decked to the nines with bows, ribbons, doves, icicles, and ornaments in various shades of winter blue. We only had a real live tree one Christmas, but it was one of the most magical Christmases I can remember. I vowed that year that when I had my own family, we would get a live tree every season. 

The year my husband and I got engaged, right before New Year’s, we went to one of the largest tree farms in town for a date night. In true Holiday Movie fashion, we rode in a horse-drawn wagon through the rows and rows of Christmas trees. Because we had already decorated the family Christmas tree, my soon-to-be-fiancé and I picked a tiny Christmas tree for my bedroom. It was again one of my most favorite Christmas seasons, as I would wind down every night, gazing dreamingly at its soft glow. 

As my now husband and I first got acquainted at a Christmas party during college, it was very fitting that we should get married during the Christmas season on 12/13/14 and celebrate the perfect winter wonderland wedding. We got back from our honeymoon on December 22nd that year, so we didn’t have much time to get a tree for our first Christmas as a married couple. My husband lovingly went out on Christmas Eve and picked up a free tree from a local grocery store! How perfect! We spent the evening decorating our first tree together as husband and wife. 

Two Christmases later, when we went to pick out our tree, my sister took photos of us for our first married photo Christmas card – to announce our first baby!! The tree was adorned with not only “Mr. and Mrs.” ornaments but also “Baby” and “Expecting” ornaments. A great aunt gifted a handmade one with a card that said, ‘For the first Christmas in your heart and the first Christmas in your arms.’

Of course, for our baby’s first Christmas, we went back to the tree farm, had photos done, and picked out our first tree as a family! That year, we got to see the glow of our tree reflected from our precious little one’s eyes.

The following year, per tradition, we got our photos taken at the tree farm once more and enjoyed chasing our little toddler around. We didn’t know then, but we were expecting again! So like before, we used our Christmas card with the tree photos to announce our coming addition to the family. 

Every year, we pick out a tree and get our Christmas card photos done at the Christmas tree farm. The rest of the Christmas season can be chaotic and stressful, but for me, this is one tradition that I cherish and will honor every year. 

This year, a lot of the holiday hullabaloo may look very different. There may be no sitting on Santa’s lap or story times with Santa, and no big family holiday parties, but I know that one tradition that won’t be canceled is our annual trip to the tree farm.

Contributor, Rebecca H., has carried the tradition of real Christmas trees from state to state!

We have always had real trees growing up (even in Florida). Ever since moving to Ohio though, we LOVE cutting down our own! We save a bit of the stump and write the date on it and turn it into an ornament. Also, I’ll boil the leftover branch pieces to make the house smell extra Christmas-y!

It’s Christmas. Keep it real.

• Enter your zip code to find a real Christmas tree near you with the REAL TREE LOCATOR
  • The interactive map and search filters can help you find a real Christmas tree no matter where you live and like to shop:
    • Choose and Cut Farms
    • Seasonal Lots
    • Garden Centers
    • General Retailers
    • Home Improvement Stores
  • Buying a real Christmas tree is a way to support local businesses, organizations, and their workers who have suffered during the pandemic.
• Use the visual tree guide for a close-up look at the many popular types of real Christmas trees.

To learn more about how incredible real Christmas trees are, check out the “It’s Christmas. Keep it Real.” website or follow along on social via Facebook or Instagram!