This story by Fiona Sullivan and Cassandra Hemenway was first published in the Bridge on Dec. 17.

Excess rain caused by climate change could be linked to challenges with growing Christmas trees in Vermont. 

“The soil has been saturated for a year or more,” said Steve Moffatt from Moffatt’s Tree Farm in Craftsbury. With saturated soil, Moffatt said, there is a “lack of oxygen, so roots can’t breathe. … when it’s warm and wet in June you get more foliar disease, and the soil is wetter so you get more soil-related diseases.” Moffatt said a “noticeable percentage” of his trees are dead or dying because of soil saturation. 

Will Sutton, who co-owns Balsam Acres Christmas Tree Farm in Worcester along with his wife Sue Sutton, said their farm lost 300 trees in the July 2024 flood, and 150 trees were lost in the 2023 flood. As of Sunday, Dec. 15, they had just two trees left for sale.

“We lost a whole year’s worth of trees in the flood,” Will Sutton said, noting that they typically sell about 300 trees at their “choose and cut” location on Elmore Road/Vermont Route 12 each year. “There’s been so much moisture that it’s taking (the soil) longer to drain out, so we’re finding more and more damage to other trees. We culled out 300 trees because of the flood, but we’re now seeing trees that are turning yellow even this late in the season.”

The Suttons have two other fields uphill from their choose-and-cut location, which sits adjacent to the North Branch of the Winooski River. Those fields are not seeing the kinds of tree damage the wetter Route 12 trees are having.

In fact, a study by Trace One notes that Washington County farms are expected to lose a total of $137,148 per year to natural disasters; it goes on to note that “the worst type of natural hazard for Washington County agriculture is riverine flooding, which can inundate farmland, damage crops, and disrupt planting and harvest cycles.”

Back in Craftsbury, Moffatt said he notices a decline in the trees sooner than most people would because his livelihood depends on it. There are “subtle hints,” such as declining color, lack of growth, and a “general look that it’s not that happy.” 

Moffatt said he currently grows balsam fir and Fraser fir and has had a similar amount of tree loss between the two species. 

Although Fraser fir is more sensitive to cold and has done better with the warmer winters, he said, it is also more sensitive to wet conditions and easily damaged from wet soil. Moffatt also noted that overall there are fewer trees available now compared to 40 years ago. There are fewer people growing trees and planting trees, and, he said, the average age of the tree farmer is 80. 

Not all growers have had difficulty growing Christmas trees. Thomas Paine from Paine’s Christmas Trees in Morristown said the effects of climate change are “minimal,” and “the only year we had significant problems [with excess rain] was two years ago.” Much of his soil is gravel and sand, which allows for easy drainage. 

Jane Murray from Murray Hill Farm in Waterbury said that although their driveway is muddier than ever before, they have mostly avoided water damage to their trees because they planted on slopes. She said people who planted in valleys have issues, and that most of the damage caused by flooding has been in the Northeast Kingdom. 

The Wesley United Methodist Church in Waterbury has stopped selling Christmas trees, at least in 2024. The church’s answering machine states, “We will not be selling Christmas trees this year due to the scarcity of trees and also the higher cost.” 

Moffatt maintained “It’s not just me, a lot of people I talk to are having this issue.” He said, “I have to look 10 years down the line.” And with native timber, such as ash, balsam fir, and beech not doing well, he’s considering planting red oak in his other timber lots, he said. 

As far as Christmas trees, he is now considering planting trees such as Noble fir and Korean fir, trees that, he said, “I wouldn’t have even considered five years ago.”