Some people have had the Christmas decorations up for weeks already, but if your decorations include a real Christmas tree for inside the house, you better get to shopping.
Nurseries across the Treasure Valley are joining the thousands of businesses nationwide, trying to balance a rebounding demand for real Christmas trees with only a short supply.
"This year has been a little bit harder for us to even find the trees," Katie Sedacca from the North End Organic Nursery said. "We almost didn't get trees at all."
The problem comes down to some simple math and a little lesson on supply and demand.
"Five or six years ago the demand for trees went down, so the farmers didn't plant as many trees, and it takes about seven years to grow an average sized Christmas tree," Sedacca said.
So here we are a few years later, with much fewer full-grown trees to be chopped down.
The result? Higher prices.
"The prices across the board were higher from all the farmers," Sedacca said, which unfortunately means higher prices for shoppers.
The best advice? If you're dead set on decorating with a real Christmas tree this holiday season, you better shop sooner rather than later.
