Orange Volunteer Fire Company (OVFC) will not be offering Christmas trees for sale this year because of a national shortage. The department typically brings in more than $10,000 from the annual fundraiser.
The tree shortage is being blamed on the recession of 2008: That year farmers planted fewer seedlings, and it takes around 10 years for a tree to grow to full size.
Orange Volunteer Fire Company (FILE)
Orange Volunteer Fire Company (FILE) (Source: WVIR)
OVFC found out over the summer that its supplier didn't have enough trees, so volunteers spent months working with groups in North Carolina and Pennsylvania to find another farm.
Recently, a farm willing to supply their trees notified the department it had oversold.