WHITEHOUSE, Ohio — It's that time of year again when people are searching for the perfect tree to jumpstart their holiday season.
That means it's the start of the Christmas season at Whitehouse Christmas Tree Farm.
Duke Wheeler, the owner of the Whitehouse Christmas Tree Farm, said they've been helping families find the perfect tree since 1990.
Dozens of families made their way to the farm Friday to pick out their favorite tree on the close to 70 acres of open space.
"We have people that have been here 50 years. That's where the joy is," Wheeler said. "Those people, we're seeing their great-grandchildren here. So it's been fun. Everybody's in good spirits."
He said the last couple of years, there have been more people wanting real, live trees than in the past, especially following the COVID pandemic when people were trapped in their houses.
"That actually helped our business in the oncoming years because it's just fun to get outside in a safe environment," Wheeler said. "Business is better."
Some people who were out at the tree farm sounded off on why they prefer to get a real tree over an artificial one and what they look for in a tree.
"I would definitely pick live, for sure," Izayeh Martinez from Holgate said. "I just never felt like artificial meant anything."
"Before we used to get artificial ones every year, but now we've made it a family tradition to come out and find a live one and then we try to recycle it," William Alexander from Holgate said. "We've got some friends that have goats, so they like to eat them up after we're done with it."
"I think that we always go for a Fraser fir. It has a shorter, soft needle. We really like the softer ones," Torinne Alexander from Holgate said. "That's what we kind of pick out every year."
Some are just happy to get together with family while also picking out a nice tree.
"I love family time. This is like my thing, as soon as Thanksgiving's done, I go ahead and start tearing down and setting up," Angie Alexander from Holgate said. "So I just love the decorations and everything."