Gifford's Tree Farm

The Gifford family tree farm came into existence in 1942 with the purchase of a small 5-acre parcel of land by company founder Lyle Gifford and his father Howard Gifford near Wattsburg, Pennsylvania. This small farm field, originally owned by Howard's father-in-law Clinton Bisbee, was planted with 1,000 European Larch, 1,000 Norway Spruce, and 1,000 Red Pine. From 1943-1944 another 1,000 Red Pine and 1,000 European Larch were carefully planted and maintained. In order to ensure a large and diverse supply of trees, another large parcel of land was purchased in 1945. The species of trees planted on this land included Scotch Pine, Colorado Blue Spruce, and Densada White Spruce. In the fall of 1950, the pine and spruce trees were selectively harvested for retail sale as Christmas trees for the grand price of $1.50 each for any size, tax included. The European Larch, which are deciduous, lose their needles every year and have to this day matured into beautiful timber. In fact, a number of these trees have been used over the years to create magnificent home furnishings.

The popularity and success of Gifford's tree farm grew so much in the years following 1950 that a very large tract of land in New York was purchased in 1956 to keep up with market demand. Thousands of trees would be planted on this property in a wide variety of Christmas tree species, including: Austrian Pine, White Pine, Scotch Pine, White Spruce, Blue Spruce, Norway Spruce, Blue Douglas Fir, and Fraser Fir. Given the success of raising Larch for timber products, Gifford's tree farm also began to actively manage tracts of land for the production of veneer hardwoods. Target species include Black Cherry, White Ash, Hard Maple, White Oak, Walnut, Beech, and Hickory. Over the years Gifford's tree farm has also grown to include a retail outlet for shrubs and ornamental trees, greenhouses for retail sale of flowers and vegetables, and landscaping services. A total of 67 years and three generations later, Gifford's tree farm proudly offers a diverse selection of quality Christmas trees at the best prices around, period. Gifford's tree farm is currenly owned and operated by Lyle Gifford's son Jeffrey Gifford and grand-son Douglas Gifford.