For most families, a Christmas tree spends just a few weeks in the living room. But improving the next generation of trees can take decades.
Justin Whitehill, Christmas tree genetics program lead at North Carolina State University, says developing seeds is a long, evolving process.
"It takes about 25 to 30 years before the trees actually start to produce female cones and male pollen, which are the components you need to generate that next generation of genetic improvement," Whitehill says.
After roughly three decades of research, the newly opened Tobacco Trust Fund Christmas Tree Seed Center of Excellence in Ashe County will clean, process and distribute improved Fraser fir seeds.
According to Center Director Tracy Taylor, it was important to produce trees that grow faster, have the shape growers want and hold their needles for longer.
“The last thing a consumer of a real Christmas tree remembers is sweeping the needles out of their floor the day after Christmas," Taylor says. "So our trees have all those traits that growers like, as well as the needle retention, which is in there for consumers.”
North Carolina is the nation's second-largest Christmas tree producer, and the industry generates over $250 million annually. In Ashe County alone, Christmas trees contribute more than $85 million to the local economy — making it the largest producing county in the country.
But these growers are facing increasing challenges, especially with inclement weather over the past couple of years. Researchers say floodwater from Hurricane Helene likely helped set the stage for a spread of Phytophthora Root Rot, a soil-borne disease that’s one of the industry's biggest threats. The recent drought is making that even worse.
But the hope is that improved genetics will eventually help growers better withstand these challenges.
For Justin Whitehill, the opening of the seed center represents much more than a new building.
"I see this sort of the ending of one chapter and the beginning of a new chapter for North Carolina's industry," Whitehill says.
The first improved Fraser fir seeds are expected to reach growers this fall.