Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, November 12, 1995 TAG: 9511130059
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: D-7 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: INDEPENDENCE LENGTH: Medium
``A lot of those trees we thought would take two years are going to recover in one year. And a lot of those trees that we thought would take three years are going to recover in two,'' Osborne said.
But there is a down side. ``The thing you still have to keep in mind, though, is you lost a year's growth,'' he said.
Jaye Baldwin of Whitetop, who has grown Christmas trees since 1976, said many of his trees are damaged. ``But overall, they have recovered at a much higher rate than we had anticipated.''
This week is harvest time for the 130 Christmas tree growers, including Baldwin, who belong to the Mount Rogers Area Christmas Tree Growers Association.
Members banded together in 1994 to seek federal assistance after a spring freeze caused an estimated $12.7 million in damage to the Fraser fir Christmas tree industry in Grayson, Washington and Smyth counties.
Low-interest federal loans were made available to farmers, providing they met qualifications such as proving a financial hardship and being turned down for a bank loan.
Agricultural experts from both North Carolina and Virginia surveyed initial damage in the fields and tried some experimental pruning.
Many of the trees ``had abnormal tops,'' Osborne said. ``But they were able to trim a whole lot of that out to where it looks fairly decent. They've recovered a whole lot.''
Despite a drought in the lower elevations this year, the weather in the nearly mile-high Whitetop community at the edge of Virginia's highest peaks has remained cooperative for tree growers, Baldwin said.
``We had a lot more rain here on the mountain,'' said Baldwin. ``The weather has just been ideal this year.''
Baldwin sells some of his crop at a retail lot in Bristol, Tenn. Premium Fraser firs will sell for more than $30 apiece. Baldwin asks for $10 less for slightly damaged trees.
``It's turned around and looks a lot better this year than it was last year,'' he said. ``A lot of trees that were heavily damaged are still heavily damaged. It will take them at least another year to recover or be sold as a lesser-quality tree.''
by CNB