The history of the use of trees can be traced back to the Egyptians. Boughs and entire trees were used to decorate for Winter Solstice celebrations. The culture kept horticulture business alive as garlands were ordered to place upon memorials honoring gods and deities.
That indicates they were gardeners who produced a constant supply of foliage.
Why the column started with this long-standing history is to illustrate the centuries through which evergreens have brought the element of joy. Pines represented immortality in both Chinese and Japanese cultures. Juice from the tree was believed to prevent aging. Tyrolians planted pines as a marriage gesture.
Fast forward several hundred years to Germany. Martin Luther on a cold, starry night carried in his “Christmas” heart the thought of taking home a tree and adding candles to give the effect of the stars that sparkled overhead.
Records have shown that in Latvia, 1510, trees were decorated with paper, sweets and fruit. Then, in 1531, there was a retail tree lot in Germany. By the 1600s, decorations included ribbons, tin shapes, small books, dolls, food and lace. Around 1610, tinsel was produced.
Interestingly, in 1776, as our nation squared off in a war for independence, Hessian troops were fighting with Britain. In a joyful mood on Christmas Eve, they chose to round up food, produced a decorated tree and commenced to sing. Their troops were defeated the very next morning. But that custom lived on.
By 1842, a decorated pine tree was displayed in Williamsburg, Virginia. In 1851, Mark Carr applied entrepreneurial skills by filling oxcarts with harvested fir and spruce trees from the Catskills and opened a tree lot. Those trees were sold for 5 and 10 cents.
The story continues as Thomas Edison brought electric lighting. Before they could be popularized, Ralph Morris in 1895 viewed strings of lights on a telephone switchboard and applied those to his tree. By 1901, a Trenton, New Jersey tree farm was established with 25,000 spruce trees. By 1908, those trees sold for $1 each.
Your head may be spinning. In today’s world, trees continue to bring joy and awe to the season. Many themes are used in the decorating. Colors can predominate, as in an all-white tree of varied snowflakes and icicles.
Trees bedecked with buffalo plaid ribbon, bows and ornaments designed with the plaid are at Mohican Lodge, along with several other themed trees. The public can view a huge variety of decorated trees in a visit to Kingwood Hall. They demonstrate a high level of creativity and ingenuity. Behind them is a love of this season filled with promise and hope.
Your own tree likely expresses much of your holiday spirit. May this season bring blessings of beauty and peace.
Mary Lee Minor is a member of the Earth, Wind and Flowers Garden Club, an accredited master gardener, a flower show judge for the Ohio Association of Garden Clubs and a former 6th-grade teacher.
This article originally appeared on Bucyrus Telegraph-Forum: Over the Garden Fence recounts the long history of evergreens
Reporting by Mary Lee Minor, Special to Bucyrus Telegraph-Forum / Bucyrus Telegraph-Forum
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