Something is 'bug-ing' Christmas tree growers in New Brunswick
At Lo-Hi Christmas tree farm, the holiday season is all about creating family traditions.
"We want to have the families come, we want to have the different generations come, we're having trucks come now with a grandfather, and a father, and a little grandchild and some day we'll be selling that grandchild and their children their tree so we want to make it a positive experience,” said David Kirkpatrick, owner of Lo-Hi Christmas Tree Farm.
But this year before trees get trimmed they had to be screened.
"When people are at a few of the farms they're going to probably be notified by the farmer that there was a bug that went around this year, it's come and gone, it laid a little egg and went away and died, it'll come back again in about 12 years," Kirkpatrick said.
Kirkpatrick says the midge is just one of those secrets of nature where the conditions have to be just right.
Trees that were infected just need a couple of years to recuperate before you can bring them home to decorate.
"Our trees have it and other farmer's trees have it, we're just simply not cutting it and we'll give it a few years to recover, we'll move on," he said.
The bugs only appear every 12-15 years, typically following a drought year, such as 2020 in New Brunswick.
"They were here, they're gone, they're not going to be flying around your living room by no means.”
Kirkpatrick says not to worry, but get your tree early, the perfect one is out there for everyone.
"The perfect tree for my family is usually the one that's left over, at the end of the year we usually just put up a small tree every year people come to our house and say that's the tree you put up, but the perfect tree every year everybody's going to walk by and there's going to be one person that that's the perfect tree to."
Making sure you can still rock around your Christmas tree and have a happy holiday.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Mystik Dan wins the 150th Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs in a three-horse photo finish
Mystik Dan won the 150th Kentucky Derby in a photo finish, edging out Forever Young and Sierra Leone for the upset victory.
Bodies recovered in Mexico likely 2 Australians, 1 American who went missing: officials
Three bodies recovered in an area of Baja California are likely to be those of the two Australians and an American who went missing last weekend during a camping and surfing trip, the state prosecutor’s office said Saturday.
No proof man lied to brother about number of kittens born in litter, B.C. tribunal rules
A man was denied a $5,000 payout from his brother after a B.C. tribunal dismissed his claim disputing how many kittens were born in a litter.
Princess Anne lays wreath at B.C. veteran's cemetery; receives 21-gun salute
Princess Anne paid tribute to veterans buried at a cemetery in British Columbia today, laying a wreath to honour the more than 2,500 military personnel and family members buried there.
Auston Matthews returns for Game 7, but Leafs minus injured goaltender Joseph Woll
Maple Leafs centre Auston Matthews returned to the lineup for Game 7 against the Boston Bruins on Saturday night.
'I just can't believe that it took so long': Body found in wreckage 3 months after deadly fire
A man accused of arson in a January Old Strathcona apartment fire is expected to be charged with manslaughter after a body was discovered in the burned building late last month.
Quebec police hand out hundreds of tickets to Hells Angels and other bikers before 'first run' meeting
Quebec provincial police handed out hundreds of fines to Hells Angels members and other supporting motorcycle clubs who met for their 'first run' in a small town near Sherbrooke, Que.
Work stoppage possible as WestJet issues lockout notice to maintenance engineers' union
A lockout notice issued by WestJet to a union representing aircraft maintenance engineers could result in a work stoppage next week.
London Drugs begins 'gradual reopening' on 7th day after cyberattack
Almost a week after all London Drugs stores across Western Canada abruptly closed amid a cyberattack, they began a "gradual reopening" on Saturday.