Holiday greenery is local shop's specialty

Michael Roknick, The Herald, Sharon, Pa.
·2 min read

Dec. 9—HEMPFIELD TOWNSHIP — It's a little harder to have a "berry" Christmas this year.

That's not a misspelling.

Winterberry supplies are tight this holiday season, said Patsy Savchuk, owner of Second Time Around Gardens.

"But we've been getting them in," Savchuk, said.

Tucked on a 43-acre farm along West Methodist Road in Hempfield Township, the plants, evergreen and gift shop share a cottage-style store.

With the holiday season in full swing, the Savchuks have cranked up the shop's wreath production.

"People want to start decorating for Christmas just after Thanksgiving," she said.

The production process at Second Time Around allows a single worker to create a wreath from start to finish.

"I'm fairly new here, so it takes me a little longer to make a wreath — around 45 minutes," said Sue Klush, a part-time seasonal employee.

It all begins when pine branches are delivered to the store. The branches are snipped and bundled together.

The wreath-makers use a heavy-duty stapler to clasp the branches onto a solid metal circle. The process, where a dash of evergreen shrubbery branches may be added to the pine bundles, continues until the ring is full.

Customers have the option of buying their wreaths with or without decorations. The decorations include a wide range of items, such as bows made at the store, pine cones and berries.

Christmas trees, all of them frasier firs, are for sale at the business.

"Frasier firs are the Cadillac of Christmas trees," Savchuk said. "They have firm branches and they keep their needles longer."

Like winterberries, demand is outstripping live Christmas tree supplies — but for a different reason.

Christmas trees are a long-treasured custom. Like most products in America, its style continues to change.

Live pine trees were once the only game in town for Christmas trees. Artificial trees arrived in the latter half of the 20th century, and sales soared as time marched on.

In recent years, live trees have come back in style. Unlike artificial trees, though, cranking up production of live ones can take up to 10 years — and even longer for tall trees.

"The Christmas tree farmers cut back or stopped planting trees, so they're harder to get now," Savchuk said. "Next year is supposed to be a lot better."