Old Time Christmas Tree Farm grows holiday cheer every year By Julie Tomascik Editor Texas may be far from the North Pole, but at Old Time Christmas Tree Farm in Harris County, the hol-iday season rings merry and bright. And at its roots, the Christmas tree farm is a family affair. The Prause family grows holiday cheer each year on their farm by providing families an opportunity to choose-and-cut their own Christmas tree. Some come from near and others from afar, but they leave with smil-ing faces, a tree and priceless memo-ries. Because the Prauses are in the business of bringing people Christ-mas joy. The Prause family Damian and Leia Prause have been growing Christmas trees for nearly 30 years. Their children, Erin and Michael, now help with the fam-ily business. The farm is located outside of Houston in Klein, and it was the best place to grow up, if you ask Erin and Michael. “It was really nice being out here and being able to run free and play when we were little kids,” Erin said. Michael helps Damian manage the farm. Together, they handle planting and trimming trees, ir-rigating, mowing and more. Erin helps with the business and admin-istrative tasks—hiring and training employees, paperwork, social media, marketing and other tasks. Christmas tree beginnings As a young farmer, Damian raised cattle and grew hay and row crops on mostly leased land. But as more people moved to Harris County, the area changed. The once wide-open spaces are now covered in concrete. Roads, homes, shopping centers and busi-nesses cover the land where cattle used to graze. Urban sprawl swal-lowed up the area’s farm and ranch land, leaving Damian with few op-tions but to adapt. And he did. “I could see that traditional farm-ing and agriculture in our area was going away,” Damian said. The idea of growing Christmas trees took root in 1991, and they planted their first trees in 1993. They began selling them in 1996. Although he misses traditional farming, he continues to grow hay and raise some cattle. But growing Christmas trees has its benefits. “I’ve never had a Christmas tree get out on us. I’ve never had the sheriff call me in the middle of the T EXAS A GRICULTURE D ECEMBER 3, 2021 At Old Time Christmas Tree Farm, the Prause family brings Christmas joy to families who visit their farm each year. Pictured left to right are Holden DiLalla (Erin’s fiance), Erin Prause, Leia Prause, Damian Prause and Michael Prause. 16
Texas Agriculture December 3, 2021: Page 16
