Regular Digger magazine feature writer Elizabeth Petersen has penned an article on the benefits of organic Christmas trees for Organic Gardening magazine. Head on over there and check it out.
Christmas tree marketing fee delayed
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Just one day after it was announced, USDA officials have decided to delay implementation of a 15-cents-per-tree marketing fee to pay for the promotion of natural grown Christmas trees. Growers in favor of the plan hope to launch a campaign to promote a preference for natural over artificial trees. Such an effort could be similar […]
Why Christmas trees were caught in the crossfire
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Pulitzer Prize winner Richard Read, international trade reporter at The Oregonian (Portland, Ore.), takes a look at the possible causes and the impact of the recently resolved U.S.-Mexico trucking dispute, which resulted in high tariffs on U.S.-grown Christmas trees and other products. According to Read, politics may explain why Christmas trees and certain other goods […]
Mexico ends Christmas tree tariffs
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The following press release was issued this afternoon by the Oregon Association of Nurseries: Oregon Christmas tree growers praise end to retaliatory tariffs Mexico has officially ended the last of the retaliatory tariffs imposed two years ago on American Christmas trees and other products being shipped into that country. Mexico had imposed the long list […]
Mexico tightens Christmas tree regulations … again
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In case you missed it … Mexican officials have tightened regulations on American Christmas trees entering that country, according to the Capital Press and reporter Mateusz Perkowski. Trees must be sprayed with pyrethrin, an insecticide, three to six weeks before harvest. They must be free of dead needles or branches, and they must also be […]
Learn about integrated pest management at Oktoberpest workshops
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It’s almost that time of year again, for beer, sausage … and bugs. That’s right — the lineup for the annual OktoberPest workshop series is all set. Sessions will be offered every Thursday in October at the North Willamette Research and Extension Center, 15201 N.E. Miley Road, Aurora, Ore. The series is aimed at helping nursery, […]
Holiday Tree Farms co-founder remembered
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The Corvallis Gazette-Times published a nice article on the late Paul Nelson Goodmonson, the co-founder of Holiday Tree Farms. He died last Tuesday, Aug. 16, at the age of 90. Founded in 1955, Holiday became one of the largest Christmas tree growers in Oregon. That is saying something, considering that in the United States, only […]
September Digger arrives soon in mailboxes
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The September issue of Digger is on its way to your mailbox – that is, if you subscribe! Here are a few of the articles you’ll find inside. Greener and cleaner — How Oregon grows top-quality trees, from the seedling stage to shipping time The digging scene — The evolution of machines for B&B and […]
Alaskan officials concerned about Christmas tree frogs
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There have been several news reports the last few days about Pacific chorus frogs hitchhiking from Washington state to Alaska, including this AP dispatch. Officials in the Land of the Midnight Sun are worried that the frogs, not native to Alaska, could spread disease to native frogs. Reports indicate the offending trees (just two so […]
Christmas trees better for the environment
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Oregon-grown real Christmas trees are a better environmental choice, according to the Hillsboro (Ore.) Argus. This is something all of us in the industry already knew, but it’s worth passing along to your friends and neighbors this holiday season.