Christmas tree retailers find lots to like at a Pennsylvania wholesale
auction
[November 24, 2025] By
MARK SCOLFORO
MIFFLINBURG, Pa. (AP) — Christmas went on the auction block this week in
Pennsylvania farm country, and there was no shortage of bidders.
About 50,000 Christmas trees and enough wreaths, crafts and other
seasonal items to fill an airplane hangar were bought and sold by lots
and on consignment at the annual two-day event put on at the Buffalo
Valley Produce Auction in Mifflinburg.
Buyers from across the Northeast and mid-Atlantic were there to supply
garden stores, corner lots and other retail outlets for the coming rush
of customers eager to bring home a tree — most commonly a Fraser fir —
or to deck the halls with miles of greenery.
Bundled-up buyers were out in chilly temperatures to hear auctioneers
hawk boxes of ornaments, bunches of winterberry, cotton branches, icicle
lights, grave blankets, red bows and tree stands. It was nearly
everything you would need for Christmas except the food and the
presents.
Americans’ Christmas tree buying habits have been evolving for many
years. These days homes are less likely than in years past to have a
tree at all, and those that do have trees are more likely to opt for an
artificial tree over the natural type, said Marsha Gray with the Howell,
Michigan-based Real Christmas Tree Board, a national trade group of
Christmas tree farmers.
Cory Stephens was back for a second year at the auction after his
customers raved about the holiday decor he purchased there last year for
A.A. Co. Farm, Lawn & Garden, his store a three-hour drive away in
Pasadena, Maryland. He spent nearly $5,000 on Thursday.
“It's incredible, it's changed our whole world,” Stephens said. “If you
know what you're looking for, it's very hard to beat the quality.”
[to top of second column] |
A worker transports holiday decorations at Buffalo Valley Produce
Auction, Thursday, Nov. 20, 2025, in Mifflinburg, Pa. (AP Photo/Matt
Slocum)
 Ryan Marshall spent about $8,000 on
various decorations for resale at Ward's Berry Farm in Sharon,
Massachusetts. Among his purchases were three skids of wreaths at
$29 per wreath — and he expected to double his money.
“The quality's good, and it's a place that you can pick it out
yourself,” he said.
Gray said her group's research shows the main reason people pick a
real tree over an artificial tree “is the scent. They want the fresh
scent of a real Christmas tree in their home.” Having children in
the house also tends to correlate with picking a farm-grown tree,
she said.
An August survey by the Real Christmas Tree Board found that 84% of
growers did not expect wholesale prices to increase this season.
Buffalo Valley auction manager Neil Courtney said farm-grown tree
prices seem to have stabilized, and he sees hope that the trend
toward artificial trees can be reversed.
“Long story short — we'll be back on top of the game shortly,”
Courtney said. “The live tree puts the real Christmas in your
house.”
A survey by a trade group, the National Christmas Tree Association,
found that more than 21 million farm-grown Christmas trees were sold
in 2023, with median price of $75. About a quarter of them were
purchased at a “choose-and-cut” farm, one in five from a chain
store, and most of the rest from nurseries, retail lots, nonprofit
sales and online.
All contents © copyright 2025 Associated Press. All rights reserved |
