Choose A Live Tree This Christmas The day after Halloween, I see Christmas decorations, and that means poinsettias, Christmas trees, presents and food! L.ast year I re ceived quite a few letters after Christmas from folks who wanted information about Christmas plants, so I will try to address some of those questions BEFORE Christmas this year. This week's question: What should I know to select a Christmas tree? Answer: Nothing. Choose a Christmas tree from the heart and choose one that you like. Here are some of my thoughts on choosing a Christmas tree. Christmas is just not complete without Santa Claus, poinsettias, an open fire and a LIVE Christmas tree. More than a million live Christ mas trees are sold in North Carolina every year. Many of liiese iiees come from northern sources, some as far away as Nova Scotia. How ever, North Carolina growers do an excellent job of producing high quality Christmas trees. So, if you have a choice, buy locally grown plants. The average Christmas tree will take five to eight years to grow into a correctly shaped, healthy 6-foot specimen. Trees require special care, fertilization, pruning and cultivation. Years ago. Christmas tree produc tion was viewed by some investors as a way to "get rich quick." Christ mas tree farmers soon found out that producing high-quality trees re quires substantial investment of fi nancial resources, labor and knowl edge before the perfect tree could be grown. You will see many species of Christmas trees in the market place. I will briefly review and describe some of the more commonly avail able tree species. Firs make an excellent Christmas tree. Three main species are preva lent in availability from North Carolina Christmas tree vendors: the Frasier fir ( Abies fraseri), the Bal THE PLANT DOCTOR C. BRUCE WILLIAMS Extension Area Turf Specialist SS '?? sam fir ( Abies balsamea) and the Douglas fir ( Pseudotsuga menziesii). The Douglas fir is not a true fir but for simplicity it will he grouped with the other firs. The Frasier and Balsam firs have a fragrant aroma, dark green foliage, strong branches to support orna ments and excellent needle reten tion. Any of the firs make exceiient Christmas trees. Plan to pay a pre mium price for these trees, since growing them can take up to 12 years. The White Pine ( Pinus strobus) is native to the mountains of western North Carolina. This tree has a soft blue-green color, pleasant fragrance and good needle retention. White pines tend to wilt more than other species and branches are rather weak for heavy ornamentation. However, when this tree is properly watered and pruned, there is no bet ter Christmas tree. The Scotch Pine ( Pinus sylveslris) is the leading plantation-grown Christmas tree in the United States. This tree was originally planted for erosion control on poor soils. Proper cultivation and pruning will make a Cinderella out of this erosion fighter. Scotch pines have stiff branches and excellent needle retention, but their natural color is yellow green. Many growers use natural vegetable dyes to spray trees and this practice alleviates the lack of green color common to the Scotch pine. The Spruce (Picea species) is known worldwide for the clean fresh Union Elementary Releases Fourth Grade Honors List ?ion Elementary School in Shallotte has released its fourth grade honor roll and most improved list for the first nine-week grading period, as follows: A-R Honor Roll Kim Bowen, Felicia Geddings, Maliory Hewett, Joshua Knight, Shannon Long, Lavar Marlow, Todd Summer, Ashley Bourland, Ashley Bryan, Grace Moffett, Blaire Ansley, Keri Roberts, Byron Nelson, Chris tina Fiorentino, Donald Nealy, Ro bert Muller, Robert Morgan, Mary Katherine Baker, Becky Hall, Kortney Carter, April Gause, Meagan Potts, Jessica Schwab, Bradley Smith, Kristen Ward, Britt Williams, Megan Williams and Nikki Williams. Most Improved Neil Smith, Jermaine Bryant, Michael Cheek, Jacquelyn Bush, Japheth Hester, Martez Hill, Jessica Wilkinson, Takethia Gore, Robert Muller, Louis Tavares and Celia Everhart. ?A Hours A DayV7 Days ? ShaUotte-Jct. Hwy. 17 & Holden Bch Hd r?+c t?H' ts