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‘We try to make it a very family event’: New England farms open for Christmas tree season – The Boston Globe

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1 year ago

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‘We try to make it a very family event’: New England farms open for Christmas tree season – The Boston Globe


Most will open to the public this weekend, some for just a couple of days. The selling season is shorter this year, thanks to a late Thanksgiving. Although heavy rains and a late spring frost recently decimated seedlings for several popular Christmas tree varieties in New Hampshire and parts of New England are experiencing drought conditions, farmers are adapting.

Phillips, a retired software engineer, said his family expects to sell about 300 trees this season from their small 5-acre tree farm. They aim to keep their prices on the low end, at $65 for a tree, and round out the experience with hot cocoa, cappuccinos, homemade cookies, candy canes, and a scavenger hunt for the kids, he said.

“We try to make it a very family event,” he added.

Nigel Manley, program director for the New Hampshire/Vermont Christmas Tree Association, said people have a lot of nostalgia wrapped up in the ritual of choosing their own tree and cutting it down, especially for those who associate fond holiday memories with the distinct scent of a real tree inside a warm home.

“People want to hold onto that,” he said.

Victoria Phillips and her husband, Rodney W. Phillips, who run “Grandpa’s Farm” in Loudon, N.H., decorated wreaths in the shop.David L. Ryan/Globe Staff

Manley, who co-owns South Farm Christmas Trees in the little town of Bethlehem, N.H., on the northern edge of the White Mountains region, said he had initially planned to open the farm’s retail operation after Thanksgiving, but ultimately decided to do so the weekend before, as Thanksgiving fell so late this year.

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The farm usually sells about 800 trees per year, Manley said. That includes 200 sponsored through the “Trees for Troops” program, which delivers donated trees to US military bases, he said. The farm also sells about 350 trees wholesale to retailers in southern New Hampshire and in Massachusetts, and the rest are sold to in-person consumers.

Manley said the typical price to claim and cut an average 7.5-foot tree can run from about $65 to $90 or higher in some areas.

“It’s like real estate,” he said. “It depends on location. If you’re close to a lot more people and you sell a lot more trees, the chances are they’ll be more expensive because that’s just the way it is.”

Early signs suggest consumer demand is “really strong” this year, though this weekend’s boom or bust for the retail business is heavily weather-dependent, Manley said. His farm sits north of Franconia Notch, so severe wintry weather can snarl traffic and block would-be customers from reaching him.

Unlike last year, when some conifer species were in short supply or even unavailable from the New Hampshire State Forest Nursery, this year’s extremely dry autumn has prompted some businesses, including Tonry Tree Farm in Hampton Falls, N.H., in the Seacoast area, to warn buyers to take extra care to keep their trees watered and a safe distance from heat sources in their homes.

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The impacts of drought or excessive rainfall in any given year will vary from one farm to the next and primarily affect newly planted trees more than those with established root structures, according to Manley, who recently retired from a decades-long post with the Society for the Protection of New Hampshire Forests.

Farmers who experience a particularly bad year for their seedlings can often “catch up” by planting additional trees in subsequent years, since those that people cut down each winter are typically five to 10 years old, Manley said. Even so, farmers here in New England and elsewhere are introducing irrigation systems and mulching techniques to improve the performance of their seedling crops as they adapt to climate change, he said.

Warning sign posted at “Grandpa’s Farm” in Loudon, N.H., caution visiting families to watch their step around newly planted trees.David L. Ryan/Globe Staff

Farm-grown trees aren’t the only option for families seeking their Yuletide fix.

The US Department of Agriculture’s Forest Service sells permits online for just $5 to those who wish to find and fell a holiday tree from certain areas in a national forest of their choice, including New Hampshire’s White Mountain National Forest or Vermont’s Green Mountain National Forest.

Manley said he has mixed feelings about consumers plucking trees from the forest. Such specimens won’t be “nicely shaped and groomed” like those that have grown under the watchful eye of a farmer who mows, fertilizes, and prunes throughout the year, he said.

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Besides, many buyers appreciate the full experience that comes with stopping by a family business to select a locally grown agricultural product, he said.

For those thinking about swinging by a Christmas tree farm this season, Manley has a few important tips:

First, before heading to a farm — there are hundreds listed on the National Christmas Tree Association website — double check to confirm its hours of operation are up to date. (Nothing ruins a family road trip quite like arriving to find Walley World is closed.)



Source: National Christmas Tree Association

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Second, think about any preferences you may have for a particular tree species and height, as well as any additional services you may wish to use. Many farms wrap trees to protect them for the ride home, and some use shakers to reduce the amount of loose needles and debris.

“It just depends on the farm,” Manley said.

Third, come prepared to walk around outside and actually cut down a tree. While the family at Grandpa’s Farm in Loudon said they make hand saws and sleds available, they note you may also bring your own tools — but remember that Christmas tree farms typically prohibit patrons from using power tools.

“Most insurance companies don’t want a lot of people running around with chain saws,” Manley said.

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Steven Porter can be reached at steven.porter@globe.com. Follow him @reporterporter.





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New Hampshire

Bill to outlaw using student IDs to vote clears NH Legislature

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9 hours ago

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March 9, 2026

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Bill to outlaw using student IDs to vote clears NH Legislature





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New Hampshire

NH cold case solved 40 years after police found man’s skull in woods

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21 hours ago

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March 8, 2026

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NH cold case solved 40 years after police found man’s skull in woods


Local News

Investigators partnered with a nonprofit genetic genealogy analysis organization to identify the man who the remains belonged to.

Warren Kuchinsky was born in 1952 and last known to be alive in the mid-1970s. New Hampshire Department of Justice

By Darin Zullo

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2 minutes to read

After nearly four decades, a man whose skull was discovered in the New Hampshire woods has been identified.

Warren Kuchinsky was born in 1952 and was last known to be alive in the mid-1970s, New Hampshire Attorney General John Formella and New Hampshire State Police Colonel Mark Hall said in a statement. In 1986, his skull was found in a wooded area in the town of Bristol.

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At the time, investigators weren’t able to identify whose skull it was, according to officials. Last year, however, the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner partnered with the DNA Doe Project, a nonprofit organization, to solve the case using forensic genetic genealogy techniques.

Kuchinsky’s identity was confirmed through DNA testing of a surviving family member, according to officials. There is no evidence that his death was caused by foul play, according to the statement.

Founded in 2017, the DNA Doe Project partners with law enforcement, medical examiners, and volunteer genealogists to apply investigative genealogy to John and Jane Doe cases. By analyzing DNA profiles and building family trees from publicly available genetic databases and historical records, the organization has helped solve more than 250 cases nationwide.

“We are honored to have partnered with the State of New Hampshire on this case,” DNA Doe Project Team Leader Lisa Ivany said in the statement. “Through the power of investigative genetic genealogy and the dedication of our volunteer genealogists, we were able to develop a critical lead in less than 24 hours. We truly hope that this identification brings long-awaited answers to Mr. Kuchinsky’s family.”

Initial DNA testing turned up only distant matches, so the DNA Doe Project selected the case to be worked on at a virtual retreat in May 2025, according to the organization’s case profile. Over the course of a weekend, more than 40 genealogists from the U.S., Canada, England, and Scotland collaborated virtually to work on the case.

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Within hours, the team discovered that the unidentified man had roots in New Hampshire and Quebec, according to the profile. They later zeroed in on Kuchinsky, who had attended school in Plymouth, N.H., but had no official proof of life past 1970.

“This identification reflects the power of partnership and scientific advancement,” Formella said in the statement. “The dedication of the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner, the investigative support of the New Hampshire State Police, and the extraordinary work of the DNA Doe Project have restored a name to an individual who had been unidentified for nearly 40 years. We are grateful for their professionalism and commitment.”

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New Hampshire

New Hampshire House Advances One of The Nation’s Most Extreme Transgender Bathroom Bans

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1 day ago

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March 8, 2026

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New Hampshire House Advances One of The Nation’s Most Extreme Transgender Bathroom Bans


The proposal would fine transgender people up to $5,000 for using bathrooms aligned with their gender identity.

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Bathroom bans targeting transgender people have been spreading rapidly across the United States. In previous years, adult bathroom bans in public buildings were limited to a handful of states with extreme laws. This year, they have become one of the primary vehicles for anti-trans legislation nationwide. Kansas was the first to act, passing a bathroom bounty hunter system and invalidating transgender people’s IDs. Idaho and Missouri began advancing their own bills. Now, the New Hampshire House of Representatives has passed its own version — one of the most extreme in the United States, which states that a trans person using the bathroom of their gender identity is a crime under the state civil rights act, violations of which carries hefty penalties. The bill passed 181-164 on Wednesday night, just weeks after Governor Kelly Ayotte vetoed a separate bathroom ban. Republicans are now sending her something far more aggressive — raising the question of whether they are trying to move the goalposts or simply daring her to veto again.

“Notwithstanding any other provision of law, with the exception of RSA 21:3, RSA 21:54, and paragraph II below, all multi-user facilities, including bathrooms, restrooms, and locker rooms located in buildings owned, leased, or operated by any municipality shall be used based on the individual’s biological sex,” reads the new bill. This prohibition is expansive: it applies to parks, rest stops, airports, civic buildings, and more, and could leave transgender people struggling to find a public place to use the restroom across the state.

The bill contains a novel enforcement mechanism not seen in any other state. It declares that a transgender person “asserting” that their gender identity allows them to use the bathroom is against the law under the state civil rights act, turning civil rights protections that were meant to be protective of transgender people into a weapon against them. “It shall be unlawful for any person to assert that their gender identity is a sex other than that defined in RSA 21:3 for the purposes of accessing places or services restricted on the basis of sex,” reads the bill. Such violations could result in fines of up to $5,000 per incident and even jail time if a person violates a resulting court injunction by continuing to use the restroom.

The bill also contains provisions for private businesses. It permits any owner or operator of a “place of public accommodation” — a category that under New Hampshire law includes hotels, restaurants, theaters, retail stores, bars, and concert venues — to restrict bathrooms by assigned sex at birth. The bill then immunizes those businesses from discrimination claims: “Adoption or enforcement of a policy pursuant to this section shall not be deemed discrimination under RSA 354-A or any other state law,” it reads.

A separate bill, HB 1217, also passed on Wednesday. That bill permits governmental buildings and businesses to classify bathrooms and locker rooms by assigned sex at birth — similar to the bathroom bans Ayotte has already vetoed. It passed by an even wider margin, 187-163. It contains no enforcement mechanism, but rather, states that bathroom bans and sports bans are not discriminatory towards transgender people under New Hampshire law.

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The bills are part of a larger movement towards bathroom bans for transgender people. Just last month, Kansas passed a bathroom ban that allows every citizen in the state to become a bounty hunter, where reporting transgender people in bathrooms can net them $1,000 per trans person caught. This law also invalidated trans people’s drivers licenses in the state. Meanwhile, Idaho and Missouri are both advancing extreme anti-trans bathroom bans of their own, with Idaho’s ban even applying to private businesses, making it against the law for a private business to allow a trans person to use the bathroom that matches their gender identity.

The bills are substantially more extreme than the one vetoed by Governor Ayotte just weeks ago. In a veto statement of a bathroom ban last month, Ayotte stated, “I believe there are important and legitimate privacy and safety concerns raised by biological males using places such as female locker rooms and being placed in female correctional facilities… At the same time, I see that House Bill 148 is overly broad and impractical to enforce, potentially creating an exclusionary environment for some of our citizens.”

It remains unclear why Republicans are pushing an even more extreme version of a bill their own governor has already vetoed three times. The bill still needs to pass the New Hampshire Senate and be signed by Ayotte to become law. One possibility is that the more extreme HB 1442 is designed as cover for HB 1217 — making that bill appear moderate by comparison and improving its chances of earning a signature. Another is that Republicans believe they can pressure Ayotte into signing, or are simply laying the groundwork for an override attempt down the line. Regardless, HB 1442 is one of the most extreme bathroom bans moving through any state legislature in the country, and transgender people across New England will be watching closely as it advances to the Senate.

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