This year's Rockefeller Center tree comes from Binghamton area: When it will move to NYC

Jeff Murray, Binghamton Press & Sun Bulletin
·2 min read

Every year, the Rockefeller Center selects a Christmas tree to adorn the sprawling campus for the holidays — the famous cultural landmark covers 22 acres in midtown Manhattan.

This year, that iconic tree is coming from Binghamton's backyard.

The Rockefeller Center announced a towering Norway spruce from Vestal has been selected as its 2023 Christmas tree. The tree, sandwiched between two residences near Binghamton University's Vestal campus, is 80 feet tall and 43 feet in diameter.

Each year, the Rockefeller Center selects a Norway spruce as its holiday centerpiece.

How was Vestal tree chosen for Rockefeller Center Christmas 2023?

This 80-foot Norway spruce in Vestal was selected as the 2023 Christmas tree for Manhattan's Rockefeller Center.
This 80-foot Norway spruce in Vestal was selected as the 2023 Christmas tree for Manhattan's Rockefeller Center.

As has been the case every year for the past three decades, the tree was selected by the head gardener for Rockefeller Center.

Erik Pauze told the Rockefeller Center Magazine he found the Vestal specimen while on his way to check out another tree last year.

More: Why the Norway spruce is 'an excellent choice' for Rockefeller Center

Have Southern Tier trees been chosen before for Rockefeller Center?

In 2020, a 75-foot Norway spruce from Oneonta was selected for the Rockefeller Center holiday display.

The tree generated widespread attention at first for looking sparse upon its arrival in Manhattan. It later captured hearts when a tiny Northern Saw-whet Owl was found nestled in its branches, surprisingly unharmed after hitching a ride to the city all the way from Oneonta.At the time, the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic, the tree's Oneonta owner said he hoped the tree's lighting would help Americans "just forget everything and just have a great day."

TOPSHOT - The Christmas Tree in Rockefeller Plaza is seen during the Lighting ceremony in New York City on November 30, 2022. (Photo by KENA BETANCUR / AFP) (Photo by KENA BETANCUR/AFP via Getty Images) ORIG FILE ID: AFP_32WY8PR.jpg
TOPSHOT - The Christmas Tree in Rockefeller Plaza is seen during the Lighting ceremony in New York City on November 30, 2022. (Photo by KENA BETANCUR / AFP) (Photo by KENA BETANCUR/AFP via Getty Images) ORIG FILE ID: AFP_32WY8PR.jpg

When is Rockefeller tree lighting?

The Rockefeller Center will send a crew to Vestal on Nov. 9 to cut the tree down. It will be transported to New York City and is expected to arrive at the Rockefeller Center on Nov. 11.

After being wrapped with more than 50,000 multi-colored, energy efficient LED lights and crowned with a Swarovski star, the tree will be lit during the live broadcast “Christmas in Rockefeller Center” on Nov. 29.

The Vestal Christmas tree will remain on display at the Rockefeller Center until 10 p.m. Jan. 13, 2024.

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This article originally appeared on Elmira Star-Gazette: Rockefeller Center tree 2023: This year's pick is from Binghamton area