Christmas tree growers expect good season

South Carolina tree sales were up 15% last year, and growers expect another strong year, according to Steve Penland, York County tree grower and executive secretary of the S.C. Christmas Tree Association. Another grower is George Kessler. He operates Hilltop Christmas Trees and, since 1971, has been growing trees in the Central area. Kessler believes more people are realizing that buying a fresh-cut locally grown tree is a smarter consumer choice and better for the environment than buying an artificial tree or a tree that is sent to a big box store from a distance.