December 9, 2014

Christmas Trees from the Connecticut Hills

This year we picked up our Christmas trees from the Jones Family Farms, in the gentle White Hills of Shelton, Connecticut. The Jones family has been working this land since 1848, when Philip James Jones, a Welsh-Irish immigrant, purchased acreage and began selling beef, lamb, eggs and apples to the locals from his horse-drawn cart. Fourth-generation Philip Jones planted evergreen seedlings as part of a 4-H forestry project - that was the beginning of the Christmas tree farm. Today there are more than 200 acres of Christmas trees under cultivation, including Douglas Fir, Balsam, Blue Spruce, and Fraser. The family enterprise also includes a winery, a farm-to-table cooking studio with classes, and a number of children's farm education programs. During the summer, customers can pick their own strawberries and blueberries. The Jones family farmers are passionate about caring for the land, the soil and the crops. Their motto is: "Be Good to the Land, and the Land will be Good to You."

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