Riding in a tractor to get your tree can be an event and quite fun!
While there are plenty of places to get your Christmas tree, we’ve been getting ours at Schmidt’s Christmas Tree Farm almost 35 years. Located at 1741 Flint Hill Road, Landenberg, PA, they are open the entire Christmas season.
The journey begins at the end of the drive, between the Schmidt’s house and the outbuilding. Usually Erich Schmidt is somewhere around there to orchestrate the many employees that provide the various services that are offered.
From there you can go to the gift shop in the outbuilding. The shop has a wonderful assortment of seasonal items. They have shelf ornaments, hand made wreaths, bulbs for the tree, a variety of tree stands, etc. There’s also a spot inside with hot chocolate, popcorn and other snacks, along with wine tasting station from one of the local wineries. This is especially helpful during inclement weather for both the children and the adults. This is also where you pay for everything you may purchase, including your tree(s). Sometimes you’ll even see Mrs. Schmidt at one of the cash registers!
To the north (right side of the outbuilding as you approach), the kids can play in the “tube” farm. The kids really love it.
They also have some reindeer. Yep, that’s right, real live reindeer. They’re pretty fun to get a glimpse of.
Now to the trees.
Finding your Christmas Tree
There’s more than one way to get yours, but for us we think there’s something about the adventure of riding the tractor through the woods, searching for, and cutting down your own tree. We’ve even walked down the road, through the hollow and back up again both ways!
First, there’s the typical way
Pick your tree from their wonderful selection of pre-cut trees just beyond the outbuilding on both sides of their gravel access road. We won’t call that cheating, but, if you can’t find the one you like in the fields, there are definitely some good ones in stock. Once we found ourselves short on time. We drove to the tree farm, found a great pre-cut tree, and were back at the house in less than 20 minutes (we do live pretty close though). And we were quite happy with the tree we picked!
Also in that area are live trees. These are especially good if you’d like to plant one in your yard after the season. We’ve done that ourselves and for a small fee Erich installed it at our house.
Then there’s the adventurous way
The tractor stop is near the pre-cut area where you can get your tree the typical way.
The wagon on the back of the tractor takes you to the fields on the other side of the draw. Mr. Schmidt has been known to drive the tractor once or twice. There are hay bales to sit on and it feels like you’re down on the farm.
Saws and sleds are provided so need need to bring your own. We even used one for the tree and one for our guest one year.
After the tractor ride, you end up amongst several fields in different phases of growth. Some have “baby” trees, while others have massively mature trees, with a number in between. Most are filled in well, and they range from fatter to thinner. And when we say thinner, they’re still great trees, just not as wide as the big ones.
You can walk it if you like, we have ourselves on occasion in good weather. It’s a beautiful walk, though it’s somewhere a third of a mile in each direction. Plus the walk is up and down with an elevation change of around 200 feet. That’s just to get to the edge of the fields.
The third way is the Schmidt Family’s gift to their customers
When you get there, check to see if they still hide a little bear in one of the trees in one of their fields. Because if they do, and you happen to find the bear shown below in one of the trees, the tree is yours for free! It’s a little something to give back to the community.
Photo from Schmidt’s Christmas Tree Farm website
After you have your tree
They shake it to remove any dead needles, as well as any “critters” still hiding in the branches. They once had a squirrel pop out while on the mechanized shaker. Once the needles are shaken off, the tree is put through the bailer and tagged. This is also when they measure your tree for length to determine the price.
They can also have them cut the end off and drill it if you have the type of stand that supports the tree with a center rod.
Practical Stuff
The Schmidts are careful and very serious about replenishing the trees. As noted above by the fields with “baby” trees statement, they rotate the fields and are diligent about planting new fields. This allows all of us to continue to have a good supply of trees each year!
We’ve been debating the possibility of a center rod stand. The only downside is if the trunk of the tree you cut down is not absolutely straight or has a significant curve. Both have happened to us. If this is the case, the tree may not stand as it did in the field prior to cutting it down. With the standard stand, I’ve made it look perfect in the house.
One thing we’ve done lately is take advantage of the disposal bags they offer. If you place it at the bottom of the tree and hide it under the skirt, when the season is over you just bring it up around the tree and take the tree outside! It eliminates the vast majority of the needles that fall and it’s definitely easier.
Parking is normally plentiful, but when the season is in full swing, in the middle of the day you may have to look a little to find a space. Be forewarned though, DO NOT PARK on Flint Hill Road as interferes with the traffic flow and sometimes PA State Police ticket that area.