Christmas trees
Add to the magic of Christmas with a freshly cut Christmas tree from one of the many farms in 1066 Country. There's nothing like the pine smell you get from a fresh Christmas or the look of a locally grown tree with all your glittering decorations.
You'll find a choice of farms and shops in the 1066 Countryside selling healthy trees in all shapes and sizes.
The Christmas tree tradition, as we know it, can be traced back to 16th century Germany, when the earliest reference to a decorated tree at Christmas has been traced; in 1570 the Bremen guild chronicle, there is a reference to a small fir decorated with nuts, apples, dates, paper flowers and pretzels, for the benefit of the guild members' children, who collected the dainties on Christmas day.
Once the tradition spread to Britain in the 19th century, they were traditionally not decorated until Christmas Eve and then removed after the 12th night (6 January). It was considered bad luck to have a tree for longer than this. In Europe, the most common type of trees used are; Silver fir, Nordmann fir, Noble fir, Norway spruce, Serbian spruce and Scots pine.
The lifecycle of a Christmas tree from the seed to a 2metre (7ft) tree takes between eight and 12 years. First, the seed is extracted from cones harvested from older trees. These seeds are then usually grown in nurseries and then sold to Christmas tree farms at an age of three to four years. The remaining development of the tree greatly depends on the climate, soil quality, as well as the skill of the tree farmer.
The following list of farms and shops in 1066 Country will be ablt to supply you with fresh Christmas trees in 2007:
- Cedar Cottage Christmas Tree Farm
Catsfield
Near Battle
East Sussex
Telephone: 01424 893 332/ 01424 893 750
web: www.snowtimetrees.com
- Littledown Farm Christmas Trees
Westfield
Near Hastings
East Sussex
Telephone: 01424 753413 / 01424 815011
- Spilsted Farm
Stream Lane
Sedlescombe
Near Battle
East Sussex
Telephone: 01424 721841 / 01424 870247
- Sharnfold Farm
Hailsham Road
Stone Cross
Pevensey
East Sussex
Telephone: 01323 768490
- Stonelink Farm (certified by the Soil Association)
Stubb Lane
Brede
Rye
East Sussex
TN31 6BL
Further Information: