Make Wreaths for Gifts and Holiday Cash

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PHOTO: FOTOLIA/MARILYN BARBONE
Use cuttings from evergreen trees to make wreaths for your family, friends and to sell for extra holiday moolah.

Up here in Maine, winter sets in early and we’ve all had a busy time getting ready for it. Everywhere wood has been cut and stacked, hay stored, and vegetables and jams canned in anticipation of our long cold days to come. Now, along about the beginning of November, we start to spend more time indoors beside the old wood stove . . . and wouldn’t it be nice if we could turn those warm hours into cash for the coming holidays? Well, we can . . . and if your area is blessed with fir trees, you can too!

There’s a huge seasonal market in this country for holiday wreaths, and it takes only a little effort to cash in on that demand. What better occupation than to sit by a warm fire and breathe the fragrance of balsam fir, while you shape the trees’ boughs into beautiful ornaments which will hang in windows and doorways far and wide come December?

Make Wreaths From Local Trees

The first ingredient in your new occupation is access to suitable trees. Here in the Northeast, balsam fir — the ideal material — is quite common and can be recognized by its smooth, even cones and by the bluish-white line on the underside of each needle. Other parts of the country boast different species of fir: white, red, silver, grand, and Douglas. I don’t know much about these, except that they’re cut as Christmas trees and so most likely could be used for making wreaths too. Your local forester or nursery should be able to give you all the facts you need about the resources of your area’s woods.

Fir Tree Tipping

  • Published on Nov 1, 1975
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