If you haven’t gotten your Christmas tree for this holiday season yet, you might be out of luck soon.
Some Christmas tree sellers say demand is outstripping supply and it might be a little harder to get hold of one.
In Leslieville, the East End Garden Center is preparing for the holiday rush and says customers are visiting from across the GTA.
“Demand is very high; People come to buy trees everywhere, not just in our area,” said Judy Clark of the garden center.
“They are afraid of not getting any trees. People get them, put them in their backyard and hold on to them. Last year we ran out on December 10th.”
Judy said they have already sold more than half of their stock of 2,000 trees. “It shows you that people are getting smarter; They know there will be a shortage.”
Canadian Christmas Trees Association executive director Shirley Brennan tells CityNews there are fewer Christmas trees now than there used to be.
“From 2011 to 2021 we lost 20,000 hectares of Christmas trees and that is due to retirement and aging populations across all agricultural commodities. “We don’t see the younger generation adopting it as quickly,” Brennan said.
Retail giant IKEA said live Christmas trees will not be available in Canadian stores this year because “in recent years we have failed to secure the necessary local supply of live Christmas trees to meet the needs of our Canadian business.”
The CCTA said the good news is that there are more options for the type of tree you want, but if you’re looking for a specific type of tree, you may be out of luck.
“I always look for the Fraser fir because it is the most popular. That could have higher demand and that could be the one you miss out on,” Brennan said.
“Evil alcohol lover. Twitter junkie. Future teen idol. Reader. Food aficionado. Introvert. Coffee evangelist. Typical bacon enthusiast.”