The Hoaglands, who work year round to shape Christmas trees, have also branched out into day lilies.
By SHANNON COLAVECCHIO-VAN SICKLER
Published May 16, 2003
SEFFNER - With the thermometer pushing 90 degrees in recent weeks, maybe the thought of Santa roasting chestnuts on an open fire makes you break out in a heat rash.
But on 7 acres in Seffner, George and Deanna Hoagland are growing about 3,000 Christmas trees in preparation for the winter holiday.
The couple, who will celebrate their 50th wedding anniversary in December, planted their first batch of 4,000 trees in 1991 on the land surrounding their Seffner home.
They have since reduced their tree inventory and added other greenery and fruit plants, but Dee's Trees stays busy, thanks to a local following that grew mostly by word of mouth.
When George Hoagland isn't cutting down trees for families during the rush between Thanksgiving and Dec. 25, he sells a steady stream of fruit-bearing trees, day lilies and other landscape fodder.
"This nursery is something that just seems to keep growing, and I don't know how to stop it," George Hoagland said last week, his T-shirt damp from another hot day spent among his trees. "I'm 67 now. I'm tired."
It's not easy growing and selling Christmas trees. He shears the trees at least a couple of times a year, using a 40-pound machine he wears on his back. He regularly sprays for fungus and mows between the trees.
During the holidays, Dee's Trees stays open seven days a week, often until past dark.
"That's the only time we have hired help," he said.
The Hoaglands grow three types of trees: the Leyland cypress, the red cedar and the sand pine, which is the best seller.
The Christmas trees grown here and throughout Florida don't have the strong limbs and needles of varieties grown in North Carolina.
"So you have to decorate these a little differently," Hoagland warned. "They're too soft to hold real heavy ornaments."
The Hoaglands' trees start at $25 for any tree up to 6 feet tall. After that, it's $5 per additional foot, up to a maximum of $50.
"All the people with cathedral ceilings love to come here, because they can get a 15-footer for $50," Hoagland said.
Dee's Trees began in 1991, after Hoagland was visiting family in Titusville and saw an ad in the local newspaper for a cut-to-order Christmas tree farm.
Hoagland, a ground operations supervisor at Eastern Airlines for more than 36 years, was out of work after the airline went under.
"My wife wasn't used to having me inside the house all day," Hoagland said. "One day, she packed me a lunch and told me she didn't want to see me until 4."
Remembering the Christmas tree ad, he and his wife ordered their first batch of seedlings.
Deanna Hoagland carefully mapped out their property to fit 4,000 trees, each 6 feet apart. While those first trees grew toward Christmas-worthy heights, the Hoaglands sold plants in their driveway.
Now, more than a decade later, patrons come year-round for the fruit-bearing trees and day lilies. The Hoaglands sell more than a dozen varieties of fruit producers, from blueberry and nectarine to guava, kiwi and pineapple. Trees cost about $20 each.
Day lilies, in brilliant shades of yellow, cost as little as three for $10.
"All the business I get is mostly by people telling somebody else," Hoagland said. "We don't advertise."
What: Grows and sells Christmas trees, fruit trees and day lilies. Customers pick their Christmas tree from the 7-acre tree farm, and it's cut to order. Throughout the year, owners also sell fruit trees, day lilies, other plants.
Where: 911 S Taylor Road, Seffner.
When: Farm tours by appointment. Open Monday-Saturday from 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. throughout the year. Open daily from 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., sometimes later, between Thanksgiving and Christmas.
Cost: $25 for Christmas trees up to 6 feet; $5 per additional foot, up to $50.
