Christmas Trees: Growing and Selling Trees, Wreaths, and Greens [Paperback]

Lewis Hill (Author)

Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

Money does grow on trees, and Christmas Trees by Lewis Hill is the essential equipment for anyone who wishes to gain the pleasure and profit of growing and selling trees, wreaths, and greens.

Hill, an experienced and skilled tree grower himself, begins with the very basics, providing valuable insights on how to choose the best land and the best species of trees to grow on that land. Here you will learn how to

-- Plan for continuous, efficient growth, including interplanting, natural seeding, and stump culture

-- Care for your crop throughout the growing cycle, from planting and pruning, right through harvesting

-- Propagate your own plants and collect wild seedlings

-- Select the proper equipment for the nature and scope of your planting

-- Handle problems dealt by weather, pests and diseases, and animals

-- Find wholesale and retail markets, maintain a steady supply, deal with tree buyers, advertise and price, and maintain records and plan for taxes

An attractive and lucrative side business to that of growing trees is selling greens, roping, and wreaths. Hill shares his experiences with planting and managing a greens orchard, processing greens for both wholesale and retail markets, and making wreaths, sprays, and centerpieces by hand as well as with the aid of wreath-making machines.

The complete, clear, up-to-date information is warmed by anecdotes drawn from the author's many years of Christmas tree growing and selling.

About the Author

The late Lewis Hill was a nurseryman for more than 55 years. He was the author or co-author of 15 books that total more than 600,000 copies in print. Lewis's Secrets of Plant Propagation was selected by the American Horticultural Society as one of their "75 Great Garden Books."

Product Details

• Paperback: 160 pages
• Publisher: Storey Publishing, LLC (January 12, 1989)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0882665669
• ISBN-13: 978-0882665665
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6.1 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (14 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #368,372 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Husband-and-wife author team Lewis and Nancy Hill currently live in Greensboro, Vermont where they own and operate a small fruit farm called Berryhill. Previously, Lewis first started a small plant nursery in the late 1940's where he grew daylilies, hardy plants, fruits, antique apples, greenhouse plants, and Christmas trees. His nurseries were called Vermont Daylilies and Hillcrest Nursery.

Lewis also helped form the Vermont Plantsmen's Association--later serving as president -- and was leader of a 4-H club for thirty years, sharing his knowledge with over 200 children. He is a member of the National Christmas Tree Association and the New Hampshire and Vermont Christmas Tree Associations. Lewis has written the Storey books titled Christmas Trees, Cold-Climate Gardening, Secrets of Plant Propagation, Pruning Made Easy, Pruning Simplified, and Fruits and Berries for the Home Garden.

The most recent title from the author team is The Lawn & Garden Owner's Manual, a landscape and maintenance guide for keeping beautiful grounds year round. Together they have also written Daylilies, Bulbs, and Successful Perennial Gardening."

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

32 of 33 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Great book for both hobbyist and serious grower, March 28, 1999

By A Customer

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Christmas Trees: Growing and Selling Trees, Wreaths, and Greens (Paperback)

This is a hobby for me, and Hill's book has all the answers. He has been a professional grower for many years. He covers all the details: planting, weeding, pruning and selling.

Easy to read and reasonably priced.

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The BEST book on this subject!, November 9, 2004

By 

John Schmeltz (Klingerstown, PA United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Christmas Trees: Growing and Selling Trees, Wreaths, and Greens (Paperback)

Although this book seems more designed to educate the novice at growing Christmas trees, I believe everyone, even people currently in this business, can learn something valuable from it. It is well written and enjoyable to read, plus informative in that it describes all sorts of trees used, planting methods, protection and care of seedlings and transplants, recommendations for planting locations, and a whole host of other information. I attribute this book to getting me interested in this field as a hobby. Recommend it very highly!

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Quick Read, January 3, 2004

By A Customer

This review is from: Christmas Trees: Growing and Selling Trees, Wreaths, and Greens (Paperback)

This was a good book for the novice with no experience in the tree industry. It was a quick read and enjoyable. But not for someone in who works in the field already.