IDA, Mich — You can exercise your holiday spirit and cut down your very own Christmas tree starting this weekend.
Matthes Tree Farm will offer its annual U-cut Christmas trees in Ida, Michigan Saturday, Nov. 23.
"It's crazy busy, and everything hits at once," Kate Matthes, co-owner of the farm, said of the Christmas season.
Wide tree varieties include Douglas fir, blue spruce, and Scotch pine. If you'd like a narrow variety, choose from a Fraser or Canaan fir.
Choosing the right tree comes down to room size, tree lifespan, and amount of ornaments on the tree. If you want to overload your tree on ornaments, Matthes recommends you choose a blue spruce or Fraser fir for its hardy branches. All trees will last three weeks, but only the pines and Fraser fir will make it as long as six weeks.
Additionally, Matthes jokes that people often get home with a 10-foot tree when they have an 8-foot ceiling. It looks a lot smaller in the field, she explained.
Matthes has some tree care tips.
"A big part of it starts when you cut the tree, making sure you have a nice fresh cut, making sure it's in water within the first 24 hours, keeping water in the stand," she said.
You can buy a tree life package filled with vitamins and nutrients in the Christmas Shoppe. Dumping it into the water at the base of your tree will help with its color and needle retention.
The Christmas Shoppe, petting zoo, pony rides, and live entertainment officially kick off the holiday season next weekend.
Besides fresh doughnuts, the farm will also offer handmade gifts like wreaths from Christmas tree needles and other goodies in the Christmas Shoppe.