(Radio Iowa) – With Thanksgiving over, many people are now searching for a live Christmas tree. Northeast Iowa grower Robert Moulds says the wet spring was a relief this year after battling the drought. “This year, our trees around the state got plenty of moisture, and so the growing was much better than it has been the last two years,” he says. Moulds is a member of the Iowa Christmas Tree Growers Association and says traveling to his farm near Fairbank or others is a tradition for many. “You can go out in the field and select the tree and cut it, so you know exactly what you’re getting.,” Moulds says. “There’s, there’s about 70 Iowa Christmas tree farms in Iowa, Iowa Christmas Tree Association member farms, plus, we think probably about that many more again. So roughly 100 to 140 tree farms in Iowa.” Moulds has been in the business more than 40 years.

“Planted my first trees in 1980 and sold our first trees just a few in 1986,” he says. “and we’ve been selling trees since then. We sell, we sell around 2000 trees a year.” Muolds says the key to keeping a live tree fresh is the care you give it. “Have a good stand that holds plenty of water. Never let it run dry, always use hot water to help dissolve the resins that accumulate on the tree. That is the biggest thing, and a good fresh cut tree will stay well into January,” he says.

You can find out more about a Christmas tree farm in your area, by visiting iowachristmastrees.com.