There is surely no shortage of Christmas trees in Oregon. 

Oregon is the largest producer of Christmas trees in the United States, harvesting around 4 million trees annually, according to World Population Review. That equals out to be about 33% of the total amount of Christmas trees produced in the country each year, according to the National Centers for Environmental Information. 

That number equates to around $120 million annually, per the source. 

THE WORLD’S TALLEST SNOWMAN, MEASURING 122 FEET, BUILT BY RESIDENTS IN BETHEL, MAINE

In Oregon lies Holiday Tree Farms, which is widely regarded as the largest Christmas tree producer in the world. The farm is one of 15,000 growing Christmas trees throughout the United States, according to the National Christmas Tree Association. 

Holiday Tree Farms was established in 1955 by the Schudel family. 

The farm spans over a whopping 8,500 acres, with 1 million trees harvested each year from the location, according to the Holiday Tree Farms website. 

During harvest season, the farm’s 12 separate processing yards employ around 600 employees, per the website. 

The Christmas trees grown at Holiday Tree Farms are not just bought by residents of Oregon, or even the United States. The trees grown here are sent around the world. (Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)

25-30M CHRISTMAS TREES ARE CUT DOWN ANNUALLY, DISPLAYED IN HOMES, BUSINESSES ACROSS THE US

The farm is home to several different types of trees commonly displayed in homes during the holiday season, but the most popular is their Douglas fir.

The Douglas firs grown at Holiday Tree Farms are not just sold to Oregon residences; they are also shipped out around the United States and exported outside the country to Mexico, Guam, Asia, Central America and more, according to the farm’s website.

Holiday Tree Farms also grows Grand fir, Noble fir and Nordmann fir trees, according to their website. 

Behind Oregon in terms of tree production is North Carolina. The state is not too far behind Oregon, producing about 4 million trees each year and bringing in about $86 million, according to World Population Review. 

Oregon produces more Christmas trees than any other state. (Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)

THE WORLD’S OLDEST DOUGLAS FIR TREES HAVE LIVED OVER 1,000 YEARS

As a whole, there are about 25 to 30 million real Christmas trees sold in the United States annually, according to the National Christmas Tree Association, with about 350 million growing around the country. 

The process of growing a Christmas tree is no small order. For an average sized tree of about six to seven feet, the average growth time is seven years, but it could take upwards of 15 years to grow, according to the source. 

Every spring, farmers around the country place one to three seedlings in place of every single tree that was harvested during the fall for the holidays, according to the National Centers for Environmental Information. 

Christmas trees take several years to grow to an average height of six to seven feet. (iStock)

From there, the slow growing process of the freshly planted trees begins. 

Here is the situation on Thursday, December 12:

Military

• Ukrainian officials said that the death toll from a Russian missile strike on the southern city of Zaporizhzhia on Tuesday had climbed to nine.
• Ukraine’s military general staff says it hit an oil depot in western Russia that fuels a key pipeline for Russian military supplies in an overnight attack that caused a “massive fire” at the facility in the Bryansk region.
• Bryansk Governor Alexander Bogomaz acknowledged a production facility had caught fire after a drone attack, but said there were no casualties and that the fire was extinguished.
• Russia’s army said it recaptured two villages in the western Kursk region, where Kyiv has been waging a cross-border offensive since August.
• Russia’s Ministry of Defence said that Ukraine fired six Western-supplied ATACMS missiles at a military airfield in the port city of Taganrog in its southern Rostov region.
• Deputy Pentagon Press Secretary Sabrina Singh told journalists a United States “intelligence assessment” found “it’s possible that Russia could use [an] Oreshnik missile in the coming days”, after a US official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said “Russia has signalled its intent to launch another experimental Oreshnik missile at Ukraine.”
• Videos posted on social media show that a law passed in April to boost army conscription in Ukraine is facing growing resistance while some Ukrainian war veterans say they feel snubbed and forgotten.

Politics and diplomacy

• Russia’s Foreign Ministry said a $20bn loan from the US to Ukraine, backed by frozen Russian assets, was “banal theft” that “will not go unanswered”. The loan is part of a $50bn G7 support package announced in October.
• Ukraine denied having discussed with Hungary’s Prime Minister Viktor Orban a Christmas ceasefire and prisoner exchange deal with Russia.
• Russia warned its citizens not to travel to the US and other Western countries, claiming they could be “hunted” by the authorities amid worsening relations between Moscow and the West.
• Austrian oil and gas firm OMV announced it had ended its contract with Russian energy giant Gazprom, which had earlier stopped supplying Austria with gas. Some European countries remain highly reliant on Russian gas, funnelled via Ukraine, although the war has seen them reduce imports.

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