They have become a trademark symbol of the holiday season, home throughout North Kitsap will have them by Dec. 24 and most residents will do anything to find the perfectly shaped one to complete their Christmas celebrations.

Christmas trees have been appearing more and more frequently on the tops of cars, speeding along as people rush to get them home, in water and decorated.

The farms providing these trees are preparing for the final push before their part in the season ends.

“We really have had a great response this year,” said Elda Armstrong, who helps run St. Mick’s Tree Farm in Kingston. “We are almost out of the seven- to eight-foot sized trees. We’ve got plenty of shorter ones, and lots of larger ones, but six- to eight-footers is what everyone wants.”

This sentiment was echoed by Henry’s Tree Farm’s Detlev Kroll, who said many of his farm’s six-foot trees have been snatched up as well. In this case, it was caused because of how many of those trees were planted six or seven years ago by the previous owner, he said.

“We have a lot of big nobles, and those kinds of trees,” Kroll said. “We do have some sale trees that will become Charlie Brown trees if they are left there. There are lots of large trees, 20 footers, and we only charge up to 10 feet, so some people will come and cut the tops off and use those.”

The farms, Kroll and Armstrong both said, use the greens left from those trees for wreaths and swags and the wood to keep their barns warm for visitors. Children visiting with their families are less likely to spend time in the barn, helping their parents find the perfect tree, with lots of room underneath for presents, Armstrong said.

“It’s a fun place,” she said. “Not many places have so much room for children to run around in the middle of winter. It’s usually a fun outing for everyone.”

Though the season is winding down for residents in need of Christmas trees, the farms work year round, to provide people with their favorite types and shapes, Kroll said. Nobles and grand firs tend to be the most popular because of their smell, shape and branch strength for ornaments.

“It’s a triple tie between the noble, grand and the Norway spruce,” Kroll said. “We don’t shear our nobles, which some people like, and we shear the Norway spruce pretty good, for more of a classic tree shape. The Grand is sort of in between. Most people have a different idea of what’s going to work for them, we just try and help them find the right Christmas tree.”

Big Maple Farm

Buck Lake Road, Hansville

(360) 638-2065

St. Mick’s Tree Farm

29747 Hansville Road, Kingston

(360) 779-6633

Henry’s Tree Farm

5321 Minder Road, Kingston

(360) 297-2183

Jones Tree Farm

1795 NE Sawdust Hill Road, Poulsbo

(360) 779-7840

Sawdust Hill Tree Farm

2600 Sawdust Hill, Poulsbo

(360) 638-2726