What is green when summer days are bright? What is green when winter snow is white?
Christmas trees, of course, and the Forestry Club will begin selling them Thursday evening on the lawn of the Renewable Natural Resources Building.
In past years, the Society of American Foresters has raised money by selling LSU-grown Christmas trees, and this year is no different, said Cornelis de Hoop, associate professor and club faculty advisor.
Chapter President Michael Deliberto said the fundraiser is the biggest one of the year for the society, which has 400 members statewide and 20 at LSU.
“It’s good because one, it’s local, and two, the money will stay in the (LSU) system,” he said. “It generates a good amount of revenue for the forestry club, and we’re giving back to the community, too.”
While the fundraiser is open to anyone looking for a quality tree at a good price, the trees being sold are “average trees for the average family at a reasonable price,” Deliberto said.
The trees range from 5 feet tall to 7 feet tall and sell for $5 a foot.
The trees are grown in the Lee Memorial Forest, located between Franklinton and Bogalusa, La.
The 1200-acre forest is owned by the School of Renewable Natural Resources and is used for teaching and research, de Hoop said.
“The trees are Leyland cypress trees,” he said. “Leyland cypress grows well locally and is relatively disease-free.”
Deliberto said Leyland cypress trees hold advantages for Louisianians that other Christmas trees do not.
“These trees are suited for the winter climate here because they were grown here,” he said. “They are locally grown for local people.”
de Hoop said the trees are trimmed two or three times a year to help them stay full and grow into the desired Christmas tree shape.
The harvested trees are replaced by one-year-old Leyland cypress trees that were grown in pots, he said.
The club sells about 100 trees each year, and the money raised is used to fund activities such as travel to the society’s national convention, de Hoop said.
The fundraiser will continue through Saturday morning, December 6.
Melissa Gregus, a philosophy and theater sophomore, said she plans on buying a Christmas tree this season.
“It just wouldn’t be Christmas without a Christmas tree,” she said. “It brings the scent of the season into my apartment.”
Gregus said, while she will consider price while shopping for a tree, where she gets it from will determine how much she spends.
“Being a poor college student on a very strict budget, price is definitely a factor,” she said. “But I would pay more if it was an LSU tree because it’s supporting the school.”