'TIS THE SEASON
Christmas in August: Start thinking now about sourcing your holiday trees and wreaths
August 31, 2026 | by Jennifer Loyall
It may be a little early to be singing "Chestnuts roasted on an open fire” but it’s not too early to plan your holiday visit to Hemingway Hill
It’s August, and while many of you are poring over back-to-school supply lists to make sure every single item is accounted for, I am doing the same for this year’s Christmas tree order.
There are only so many trees I can fit in the semi truck that transports our beloved, beautiful trees on their 3-day journey from our grower’s field in Washington to our farm in Terrell, Texas. It’s a balancing act to make sure all our repeat clients of Hemingway get their favorite trees, while at the same time, adding new inventory for those coming here for the first time.
So I’m making a list and checking it twice to decide what types, sizes and number of trees will be coming to our farm. I really do feel like Santa, making sure our families get their perfect tree!
Choosing the perfect trees and wreaths for you
The most popular size of tree we sell is 8.5’, but for those with high ceilings, our 10’ and 12’ trees can make your living room look like Rockefeller center! These extra-large trees always sell out first, and if you’re considering one, it’s best to reach out to the farm as soon as possible.
These large trees are special for so many reasons. First, there are fewer available for harvest. Evergreen trees grow about a foot a year, so a 10’ or 12’ tree has been tended in the field for 3 to 4 years longer than an 8.5 foot tree. We make our selections early in the summer; each tree is hand-tagged for Hemingway Hill, and many times I will send pictures to clients of the special tall tree we found for them. When it’s time for transport, a single large tree can take up the same space as five to eight of our 8.5 foot trees. So although we always try to stock a few extra 10’ and 12’ trees for new customers, I can only order so many. Let us know if you want one reserved for you!
On top of trees in the truck, we layer our extra-large 54” and 60” custom wreaths on ice. We have more and more people asking us for these larger wreaths. A lot of churches and people in the Dallas area like to decorate their gates with them. I personally order two 54” wreaths for the farm’s personal resident gate. Put a red bow in them and some dried flowers that we grow here, and with white Christmas lights they make the gates look like something out of a Hallmark movie!
Large wreaths must be pre-ordered, but we will have 24” wreaths available for day-of purchase, as well as evergreen garlands.
Prepping old-fashioned holiday cheer for your family
In addition to trees and wreaths, we are busy prepping the Old Fashioned Christmas experience that makes Hemingway Hill so worth a weekend visit. If you venture out here on a Saturday or Sunday (and also Black Friday), you’ll find a fire blazing in our cozy firepit, ready to gather your family around. Come planning to linger and listen to the Christmas music. Enjoy a free s’mores and hot chocolate with fresh-made whipped cream (it’s Christmas– we’re not using the canned stuff!).
We’ll also have warm, sugary apple cider donuts for purchase (barring rain), and new for this year, an 80-year-old John Deere engine cranking two 20qt barrels of slow-churn homemade ice cream. We’re all eating too much ice cream right now at HH because we’re perfecting our recipes. Can you imagine topping a warm apple-cider donut with slow-churn vanilla ice cream and caramel topping and as many sprinkles as you like? I mean, forget the tree!! And if you’re not full yet, fresh kettle corn will be made on the hour so you can take a bag with you for the car ride home.
Speaking of taking things home, you might also want to pick up some honey harvested right here on the farm! It will be available in handsome one-pound vintage glass muth jars, decorated for Christmas. And for those longing for flowers, we’ll even have a tulip tent where you can buy, by the dozen, some of our specially pre-chilled tulip bulbs from Holland that we use in our u-pick Tulipville event in early spring. Get them in the ground, and when they bloom in February, it will feel like Christmas morning all over again!
In addition to trees and wreaths, we are busy prepping the Old Fashioned Christmas experience that makes Hemingway Hill so worth a weekend visit. If you venture out here on a Saturday or Sunday (and also Black Friday), you’ll find a fire blazing in our cozy firepit, ready to gather your family around. Come planning to linger and listen to the Christmas music. Enjoy a free s’mores and hot chocolate with fresh-made whipped cream (it’s Christmas– we’re not using the canned stuff!).
We’ll also have warm, sugary apple cider donuts for purchase (barring rain), and new for this year, an 80-year-old John Deere engine cranking two 20qt barrels of slow-churn homemade ice cream. We’re all eating too much ice cream right now at HH because we’re perfecting our recipes. Can you imagine topping a warm apple-cider donut with slow-churn vanilla ice cream and caramel topping and as many sprinkles as you like? I mean, forget the tree!! And if you’re not full yet, fresh kettle corn will be made on the hour so you can take a bag with you for the car ride home.
Speaking of taking things home, you might also want to pick up some honey harvested right here on the farm! It will be available in handsome one-pound vintage glass muth jars, decorated for Christmas. And for those longing for flowers, we’ll even have a tulip tent where you can buy, by the dozen, some of our specially pre-chilled tulip bulbs from Holland that we use in our u-pick Tulipville event in early spring. Get them in the ground, and when they bloom in February, it will feel like Christmas morning all over again!
Capture the memory with incredible holiday photos
In a place as picturesque as Hemingway Hill, we know you’ll be eager to take photos. We’ll have two special scenes set just for you. Climb in our red sled and imagine dashing through the snow. Or, pose with the rows of Christmas trees we’ll have staged in the field to summon that Washington tree-farm atmosphere. Come early in the season, and you’ll even have time to use your pics on your holiday cards! Beyond these special backdrops, we know you’ll love the candid shots you capture around the fire, and the moment you find the tree that was meant for you. And maybe even the moment you’ve got the tree loaded on top of your car! Which reminds me…
We make it easier to get your tree home
We want the cozy holiday feelings to linger with you as long as possible, so we’re putting thought into how you’ll be getting your ideal tree home. New for this year, we will be adding a larger size bailer at the farm for these 10-12’ trees. A bailer wraps netting around the tree to make it easier to transport. It also protects the tree limbs during the journey. We stock ratchet straps for purchase, and as always, include free rope so you can tie your tree to the roof of your car and make it home safe and sound.
Put a Hemingway Hill holiday weekend on your calendar
Christmas will be here before you know it, and we hope to see you this holiday season at Hemingway Hill!
Make plans now where you are going to get your Christmas tree and wreaths and garlands.
If you’re thinking about getting a taller 10’ or 12’ Christmas tree and have questions, email us HERE. If interested in pre-ordering an extra-large 54” or 60” wreath, reach out to us at Hemingway Hill HERE.
And if you’re after the full Old-Fashioned Christmas experience, mark your calendars! Opening weekend is the weekend prior to Thanksgiving! On Black Friday and on Saturdays and Sundays throughout the season, we’ll save your seat by the fire, and have a warm apple-cider donut waiting for you!
*Hemingway Hill will be open for tree and wreath sales. Opening weekend is November 21-22, the weekend prior to Thanksgiving!
Old Fashioned Christmas Saturdays and Sundays throughout the season, as well as Black Friday (fire, free s’mores and hot chocolate, and ice cream, donuts, and fresh-made kettle corn for purchase).
Jennifer Loyall
It was my grandparents who blazed a path for farming in my family, growing hundreds of acres of cotton and wheat in Butler, Oklahoma. I followed in their footsteps when I was ten years old, landscaping my parents’ front yard while they were away with one-dollar azaleas and rhododendrons that I had spent months collecting from weekly trips to Pinewood Gardens in Andover, MA. I have always loved woody stems; for me, they represent the simple beauty of flowers and the joy of nature.