Where To Cut, Buy Your Own Fresh Christmas Tree In, Near Manhattan

MANHATTAN, IL — If you’re planning to put up a live Christmas tree this year, it’s a good idea to scope out what will be available from Manhattan-area tree growers and lots.

There are more than 16,000 Christmas tree farms in the United States, stretching over 292,050 acres, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Larger tree farms control about 75 percent of the supply, but if you’re interested in supporting a local business this holiday season, here are some places to chop or pick out a tree within driving distance of Manhattan.

Choose-and-cut:

• Abbey Farms, 2855 Hart Road, Aurora
  • Open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Wednesday through Sunday, Nov. 23 through Dec. 23. Closed Thanksgiving Day and Mondays.
  • Book online for reservations for u-cut.
  • You-cut untagged trees, $65 (plus tax) for pines; $78 for spruce; specially tagged field where all trees are $55. Precut trees start at $78 and are priced by the foot.
  • (630)966-7775
• Larson's Family Farm, 4404 Somonauk Road, Sandwich
  • Regular hours from then on are 2 to 4 p.m. Tuesdays–Fridays; 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays, through Dec. 8, then closed for the season.
  • (815)786-2249
• Lee's Trees 2, 45W002 Lees Road, Lily Lake
  • Open 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Nov. 29, then Saturdays and Sundays
  • Pre-cut trees also available
  • (630)365-2116
  • Last cutting day: Dec. 8
• Pine-Apple Farm, 309 Three Oaks Rd, Cary
  • Open 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Nov. 29 through Dec. 1, and then on Saturday and Sundays; Call to check availability.
  • Cash or check; small processing fee for credit cards. Pre-cut Fraser starting at $85, up to 9 feet. Cut-your-own: call for pricing.
  • (847)639-3248
• Anderson Tree Farm, 508. Rt 126, Plainfield
  • Open daily from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.
  • (815)436-2140
  • There is a small selection of cut-your-own trees, mainly because Christmas trees are a ten-year crop and still growing. However, the farm is bringing in some nice Fraser fir trees from North Carolina. Shake and wrap provided. The field is open for cutting trees, but the farm prefers that customers buy the precut. Lots of lovely pre-cut Frasers available, $65 to $200, with wreaths, roping, free hot chocolate and a warming room with a fire pit to make s’mores and Alfredo’s Tacos. Call ahead and check for availability for cut-your-own.
• Tammen Treeberry Farm, 37131 Essex Road, Wilmington
  • Open 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. daily starting Nov. 29, while supplies last.
  • $65 for any tree you cut yourself. There is a $10 charge for shaking and baling.
  • Tammen Treeberry Farm is one of the largest choose-and-cut Christmas tree farms in Illinois, with 160 acres of Christmas trees. The price is $65 per tree regardless of size. If you wish to have the tree shaken and baled, there is a $10 charge for that.The farm has Scotch pine and white pine, Douglas, Fraser and balsam fir trees. The farm doesn’t have as many trees to sell, so the season may close early, so call ahead.
  • (815)458-6264
• Camelot Christmas Tree Farm, 16380 South Somonauk Rd., DeKalb
  • Opens at 9 a.m. Nov. 29; after that, noon to 4 p.m. Monday-Friday; 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday-Sunday.
• Puckerville Farms, 13332 Bell Road, Lemont
  • Open for the season on Nov. 29, and open daily while supplies last from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Friday-Sunday.
  • Choose from the selection of Fraser firs ranging from 4 feet to 12 feet tall. New in 2021: Custom decorated wreaths, 25-foot garland selections and Christmas pot Fraser bundles also available. Trees are cut and trucked in from Michigan, and displayed on the Lemont farm. Trees range in price from $75 to $350. Tying them on your car is an extra. Credit/debit cards accepted.
  • (708)508-0906

Find even more options here.

Seasonal lots:

• Crosswind Farms, 14435 West Manhattan-Monee Rd., Manhattan
  • Open Nov. 27 from 4 to 7 p.m., then open Nov. 29, from 10 to 7 p.m., while supplies last.
  • (708)567-9090
• Kringle's Tree Factory, 2085 South Spencer Rd., New Lenox
  • Now open for the season.
  • Open 2 to 8 p.m. Monday through Friday; 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Saturday; 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sundays.
  • (708)606-4462
• Alsip Home and Nursery, 20601 South La Grange Road, Frankfort
  • Weekdays 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. Weekends 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.
  • (815) 469-1044
• Gorman Tree Farm, 6607 W. Bruns Road, Monee
  • Opens for season Nov. 29.
  • Open 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. daily.
  • (708)534-2375
• Sandhill Christmas Trees, 1117 Chicago Ave., Oak Park
  • Open now, closed on Thanksgiving.
  • Open 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.; closed Tuesdays.
  • (312)973-1074

Garden center:

• Graff Gardens & Farm, LLC., 7250 Southwest Highway, Worth
  • Open 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily.
  • (708)361-7805

Home improvement store:

• Menards of Tinley Park, 6851 159th St. While supplies last.
• Home Depot, 20101 LaGrange Rd., Frankfort
• Home Depot, 7300 W. 159th St., Orland Park.
• Lowe's of Orland Park, 15601 S. LaGrange Road. While supplies last.
• Lowe's of New Lenox, 2480 E. Lincoln Highway. While supplies last.

Recent data from the American Christmas Tree Association’s 2024 Consumer Report shows 99 percent of survey respondents intend to display at least one Christmas tree in their homes this year, and among them, 22 percent will opt for a live tree.

According to PickYourOwnChristmasTree, real trees will cost about $13 a foot, depending on the type of tree. At that cost, a typical 7-foot tree would cost about $90.

Years of extreme weather — drought conditions in some parts of the country and excess moisture in others — have affected Christmas tree farms.

This year, attention is focused on the Northeast, where tree farmers are struggling under severe drought conditions that are killing off young trees and could cause future shortages.

According to the U.S. Drought Monitor, about a fourth of the region was in severe to extreme drought, which hits young trees especially hard. It typically takes a tree seven or eight years to grow to the desirable height for decorating.

“Christmas tree farms in the Northeast have, unfortunately, been hit with drought conditions that will impact the crop for several years to come,” American Christmas Tree Association executive director Jami Warner told CNN.

“While consumers will be able to find their Christmas trees this season, some growers in the Northeast will not be able to harvest as many trees as they have in past non-drought years,” Warner said.