Many are familiar with the San Juan Mountains Association’s Christmas tree lot. We offer wild, locally sourced trees and wreaths – along with farmed trees – to brighten your home for the holidays. But have you ever wondered how a local nonprofit decided this would be a great fundraiser? How did it start from meager beginnings to become a local holiday tradition?
I remember first hearing the idea: “Would SJMA like to take over a well-known Christmas tree lot?” The longtime proprietors were moving on. One of SJMA’s staunch supporters, who always has one ear to the ground, saw great potential. We could run it as a fundraiser and call it “Christmas Trees for Conservation.”
That was 2013, seven years before SJMA’s merger with Durango Nature Studies. At that time, SJMA had a small conservation education team that offered field trips on public lands and classroom presentations. There were two staff members and some devoted volunteers. Our education director’s salary was funded through grants and our federal public lands partners. The second educator was seemingly funded by serendipity. I was the second educator.
The next thing I knew, we were deciding what to order. How could we sell farmed trees from Oregon and claim it as a fundraiser for conservation? So we supplemented from a farm near Montrose that offered a variety of Colorado-grown trees.
We would also educate our festive buyers about each species. I suddenly knew a lot about Noble and Nordmann firs, Austrian and Scotch pines, and Colorado blue and Norway spruce. I made educational tags for each tree. We had 650 trees that first year and could do quite well if we sold every tree.
However, there were overhead costs – as with any business. We were fortunate enough to inherit some tree racks. The lot was already fenced and lit. The original staunch supporter donated a couple of employees on a part-time basis.
But we needed saws, shovels, tree stands, twine, festive hats, etc.
A volunteer donated their camper trailer for storage. But the trailer did more than that! Our main employee – a seasonal Forest Service employee whose winter job in Antarctica had been thwarted by the October 2013 government shutdown – actually spent several nights in there.
2013 was quite the experiment. Obviously, we decided it was worth it. It has grown into more than we ever imagined and is now mostly run by our volunteers who work tirelessly to raise more funds each holiday season.
In 2016, we began incorporating more conservation and got even more local. With permission and guidance from the San Juan National Forest, we harvested 20 local white fir trees. These make lovely Christmas trees with their soft, upturned needles and pleasant smell. Yet as wild trees, they create a risk for potentially catastrophic wildfires.
Many wildfires can be quite beneficial to the landscape. They burn at low intensity through shrubs and grasslands. But fire likes to go up. If fire meets with a mid-sized white fir, fire can climb that tree like a ladder and spread flames to the crowns of mature trees. Crown fires can spread faster and burn hotter.
The 400 trees SJMA now harvests each year puts a small dent in area ladder fuels, but it does help. Plus, families can enjoy the beauty and sustainability of a local, wild tree.
Local harvesting day is Nov. 22. We need you! More information can be found at tinyurl.com/SJMA-tree-harvest-2025. Want to volunteer at the tree lot? Those details are at tinyurl.com/SJMA-treelot-2025. Many thanks to this community for 13 years of a great local tradition! We look forward to seeing you soon. I can tell you even more stories of Christmases past.
MK Thompson is the volunteer coordinator at the SJMA. See more of her writing at artofmisadventure.com.
