Juana Adoberg distinctly remembers the aroma of the Monterey Pine Christmas tree that took pride of place in her New Zealand childhood home every festive season.
So when she moved with her family to Queensland as a teenager, they were horrified to find “real” Christmas trees were not the norm.
During a holiday on the Sunshine Coast, Juana and husband Alex noticed an advertisement in the local paper for real Christmas trees, sourced from Victoria.
It struck a chord, so the couple, parents to Eli, 7, Scarlett, 6, Victoria, 3, and Emily, 11 months, investigated.
“We bought 20 trees from Victoria and started growing them,” Mrs Adoberg said.
That first year of selling was interesting to say the least. “We sold 12 trees – I think we gave half of them away to our friends,” Mr Adoberg added.
Having sold the Atherton Motel which they ran for nine years, the Adobergs thought it was time to get serious and expanded the tree farm business on a 28 acre property they’d purchased on the outskirts of Atherton.
The block is ideal, with high rainfall – a must to help the trees grow – eliminating the need to irrigate.
“Last year we planted 2000 trees and early next year we plant another 3000,” Mrs Adoberg said. “You need to plan four years ahead because the trees are about four to five years old at maturity.”
Mr Adoberg prunes them by hand three to four times a year to give them the concave shape.
The trees have proved popular, with sales this year growing exponentially. The farm’s Cairns stockist sold out quicker than ever before, and trees found their way as far south as Agnes Waters and to regulars in Townsville and Mackay.
This year the couple introduced a tagging service in November, inviting customers to choose their trees and tag them, well before the festive season hits.
Mrs Adoberg said word of mouth and repeat clients had helped the business grow.
“We get a lot of clients from down south or overseas who are use to real Christmas trees,” she said. “People say the trees, particularly the smell of them, remind them of Christmas as a child.”
The journey has not been without challenges. As one of only a few growers in Queensland, Alex and Juana have been on a steep learning curve, battling nature and weather – 4000 trees were flattened during a cyclone – but its been a gamble that’s paying off.