Suffolk Christmas tree growers prepare for festive influx

Big and small growers across Suffolk and north Essex are expecting a big influx after an unusual weather season for the trees.

Big producers such as the Rougham Estate and the Elveden Estate have been growing festive trees for many years and sell them in their thousands.

There are also a number of smaller-sized growers in East Anglia - farmers who have decided to diversify and plant up less productive or awkward fields.

Jane and Richard Scott at their plantation (Image: Lucy Taylor) Richard and Jane Scott of Lampits Farm, Thorndon, near Eye, opted to dip their toe in about 10 years ago and began planting out a field over a period of a few years.

"We thought we would have a go and put them in," explains Richard. It was a piece of land they were looking to do something with "and it seemed like a reasonable shout to put a few trees in".

"The bit of land was pretty much not going to work as an arable field. We thought we would have a go at putting in Christmas trees and just see how we got along."

Richard and Jane Scott (Image: Lucy Taylor) Four years ago, they began selling some of them to villagers "which is quite a nice thing to do", he says. 

"It's a bit of fun," he explains. "It's not hugely commercial but we quite like doing it."

Next weekend (December 7 and 8) the Scotts will be opening up their plantation from 10am to 3pm. Locals can head up the footpath from the Black Horse pub or the village hall and select the tree they like - to be delivered to them if they want.

(Image: Lucy Taylor) They also supply Frog's Farm on the A140 Norwich Road near Thwaite. This will be selling freshly-cut trees from 10am to 3pm, Fridays to Sundays until December 15.

An unusual weather season has meant that the trees are lighter in colour and still soft as they have continued to grow in the mild weather, says Richard.

"We haven't seen them like this before - we are going to have to rebrand them as climate change trees."

(Image: Lucy Taylor) His daughter-in law introduced the idea of "wonky trees" as an option last year  - where trees have developed kinks - and the public seem to have embraced it, he says.

Over at the Elveden Estate, near Thetford, Christmas trees are grown on a far bigger scale - representing almost £750K of the estate's turnover.

The estate - which is hosting a craft fair on Saturday, November 30) - began as a diversification in the mid-1970s and the plantation now covers around 16ha (40 acres) filled with about 22,000 trees ranging in height from 2ft to 20ft.

Teams from Elveden also source taller trees from the North of England or Scotland - visiting sites in February/March to identify trees which are then GPS-tagged.

"These trees are managed/trimmed/pruned throughout the year to ensure that they are amazing for our customers at Christmas," says estate managing director Andrew Blenkiron.

The estate has supplied one tree measuring a whopping 84ft in height - but this is unusual.

The business is split into retail and civic sales - with around 5,000 trees  measuring a more manageable 2ft to 12ft sold through  Elveden Courtyard Farm Shop's walled garden area.

The trees are netted and transported to cars on sleds pulled by dogs from the East Anglian Working Newfoundlands (EAWN) group, with proceeds from their work going to charity.

Dogs pulling the Christmas tree sled at Elveden (Image: Elveden Estate) "We do find that people come back every year as part of their Christmas tradition to pick out a tree and see the dogs, with a lot of return customers naming their tree after the Newfoundland that pulled it to their car," says Andrew.

The civic side of the business sells tress to town councils and businesses around the country - from Glasgow to the south coast.

"Town councils are our main clients, and any one council can request up to 30 trees," says Andrew.  

Christmas trees laid out in the walled garden at Elveden (Image: Elveden Estate) "Typically, we’ll start harvesting these trees in the first week of October and most of these are installed by the end of that month or the first week of November.

"They are put up by the Elveden team, who quite often work through the night to get them installed safely and with as little disruption as possible."

Christmas trees typically grow at a rate of one foot a year and take around six to eight years to mature. The estate plants three varieties - Norway spruce, Nordmann fir and Fraser fir.

"It is a very important part of what our forestry and conservation team deliver here and is another attractive offer from the Elveden Courtyard farm shop and restaurant," says Andrew.

The courtyard at the Elveden Estate (Image: Elveden Estate) Over at the Rougham Estate, off the A14 near Bury St Edmunds, estate and Christmas tree manager Simon Eddell is gearing up for a very busy festive season.

Simon Eddell on his plantation (Image: NQ) The estate has its own Christmas shop selling festive decorations and giftware which now has its own "woodland" display.

Simon grows 20ha (49 acres) of Christmas trees and these are planted at a rate of around 5,000 to 6,000 a year. Around 4,500 trees are sold each year.

Customers - some of whom turn up year-on-year - can select trees in advance, or they are sold pre-cut and in pots.

Almost all the trees are sold directly to the end user - which means the estate can maximise its returns and produce less waste.

Sales this year are strong, he says. "The business has to plan six to eight years in advance and predict how many we might need. Everything the estate revolves around is producing a top product with low carbon footprint."