GOBLES, Mich. (WOOD) — Constant rainfall during this year’s Christmas tree growing season was an improvement after a dry summer last year, according to researchers.

The good news comes as farms around the state open their doors for families looking for the perfect tree. 

“A lot to choose from, it took us a minute, to actually — there were so many good ones that we couldn’t make our decision,” said Aiden Hanna, who was shopping for a live Christmas tree at Wahmhoff Farms in Gobles on Sunday.

The farm usually opens for families on Black Friday but this year, the season started a weekend early.

“Like when you go the restaurant and there’s too many good things on the menu and you can’t decide,” said Evan Hanna of the mix of different trees across the farm’s 150 acres. 

MSU Extension Christmas Tree Educator Bill Lindberg said this year’s spring and early summer rains rebounded compared to last year.

“We had a pretty big drought during May and June of 2023. So, this kind of limited the amount of growth that trees put on that year just because of the lack of moisture. 2024 is a little bit different. We had plenty of rain during May and June. So, our trees, especially younger trees were able to survive and keep growing,” he said. 

Although September and October were dry, Lindberg said by then, most trees already did their growing for the year.

Ken Wahmhoff, co-owner of Wahmhoff Farms, noticed that improvement compared to what he called “meager” growth last year.

“Good top growth, good side growth, we had rains when we needed it. It was a really good growing season where year ago we hand enough rain to get the new plantings established so most of those got roped in and they did OK,” he said.

Wahmhoff said lack of rain during the trees’ growth period can impact harvest expectations. Which affects the amount sold to landscaping companies as wholesale. 

“We’re wholesaling neighborhood of 45 to 50,000 trees, it’s an estimate based on years of experience on how many trees I think I could pull out of a field to cover my wholesale needs and so on,” he said. “Those years that can definitely affect how many trees become available for the market.”

Wahmhoff said despite the lower rainfall that he hoped for last year, customers can still find trees that fit their needs. He said his crew is looking forward to bringing in the farm’s usual petting zoo and horse-drawn carriages next weekend.