Plants, etc., has a fresh supply of trees and shrubs, and they are offering all of them at 20% off the retail price. Many of the trees are already 20′ tall. There are fruit trees, flowering shrubs, evergreens, and the best news ever is that NOW! is the best time to plant trees and shrubs.
Before I continue with this post, allow me to tell you who is writing this post. My name is Jacki Kellum, and most importantly, I am one of the most loyal customers of Plants, etc., but I am also an artist and a writer, and Sherrie Blevins Bryant has asked me to create this website for her.
Because I inherited the need to tell stories from my dad, I am prompted to share with you one of my own tales about trees–especially about living Christmas trees.
Carolina Cypress Tree – Image Credit Flickr
I am also an avid gardener, and in September, I bought a Carolina Cypress Tree at Plants, etc.
My reason for plant shopping that day was to buy a Christmas tree for my garden. No, I didn’t want a fancy Spruce or Juniper that was temporarily resting in a burlap bag and that I’d place in my home, in that same bag, sometime after Halloween. I wanted a Christmas tree that would LIVE in my garden, both at Christmas time this year and throughout the rest of my time while I’m living where I have planted it.
If you squint, you might see that I planted my garden’s Christmas tree in the prime real estate that is behind my birdhouse. I wanted the tree to be readily visible every time that I looked out my back doors, which are glass.
I told the owner of Plants, etc., Sherrie Blevins Bryant, that I didn’t want an expensive this-or-that evergreen, but the expense of such a plant was only part of that issue. What I wanted was a plain, country Christmas tree–one that reminded me of old-fashioned Christmases on the farm.
I already know that my Carolina Cypress will soon outgrow its new home, and when it does that, I’ll be forced to move him to the back of my property and to put another one into his place. But I had a specific reason for wanting to buy this almost scraggly-looking Christmas tree. I planted it to remind me of the ones that grew on my farm in Mississippi, and here is where my own walk down memory lane begins:
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Image Credit: Getty Images
About 30 years ago, my children and I lived in Mississippi, and we had the good fortune to buy a little farm outside of Madison, MS. The front part of the property was cleared for pasture, and there was a barn in that front area. The land was a very gently rolling piece of property, and the house sat about 2/3 of the way back. Behind the house, there was a wonderful forest area. I had attended camps all throughout my youth, and I was thrilled to own a little piece of woodland for myself.
We moved to that farm during the late summertime, and soon after we moved there, my older children started 4th and 6th grades at the local school. Just a few days later, after school one day, my 4th-grade-son disappeared for a few minutes and afterward, he came dragging a tree out of the woods. Unlike the image in the above photo, however, it was not Christmas time. It wasn’t even cold. Rather, the time was during early September, and it was still as hot as blazes outside in Mississippi that day. I’ll never forget the moment that I saw that little boy coming across the land, pulling that tree behind him, and as soon as my son reached the door, he grinned and said, “I’ve cut down our Christmas tree.”
At the time, my heart fell. One of my camp trees was now gone–forever–but I’ll never forget that child’s joy in thinking that he had contributed to our first Christmas on that farm. That little boy is nearly 40 now, and he has children of his own, but when I went to Plants, etc., on that day in September, I was set upon the task of finding my little boy’s Christmas tree once again. And I did just that. Afterward, I planted it, and my forever Christmas tree is now living in my yard, in the prime real estate next to my birdhouse–the perfect spot for my Living Christmas Tree to live.
The temperature is beginning to chill now, and today, I plan to go outside to drape my tree with lights and a few ornaments. After the first frost, I’ll begin hanging peanut butter balls and seed ornaments on my tree. My Living Christmas Tree will be a haven for wildlife–it will be a testament to life. I cannot stress enough the importance of planting Living Christmas Trees in your garden. May all your Christmases be about Life.