Christmas Coming To Ram Pasture In July

By Nancy K. Crevier

The strains of “O Christmas Tree, O Christmas Tree,” will be swirling about a brand-new, 35-foot-tall white spruce in Ram Pasture at the annual tree lighting come December. As a matter of fact, if anyone is so inspired, they can welcome the replacement for the 85-foot holiday tree that was toppled by high winds last March after it is planted on Tuesday, July 29, with a few verses of whichever holiday song fits the bill.

“We are very excited,” said Christmas Tree Committee member Diana Johnson. “It took us awhile to get to [the point where we were ready to replace the tree]. People are so invested in this tree, and they feel a kind of ownership, that we wanted to make sure we were doing what was best.”

Newtown resident Wayne Addessi offered the full-grown fir to the Christmas Tree Committee earlier this spring, an offer that stunned the committee with its generosity, said Ms Johnson. Then other offers for replacement trees came to the attention of the committee. “We also considered a nursery grown tree, and of course, the little tree that was planted nearby a number of years ago,” Ms Johnson said. The smaller fir was intended to be a replacement for the Ram Pasture tree some time in the future, but despite its rapid growth, it still has many years to go before attaining a size large enough for a big crowd to gather around, she said. “I’m sure we could have had plenty of joy and happiness around that little tree if we had had to, but we had other options, so we thought we would do the bigger tree,” Ms Johnson said.

After the committee had weighed all of the options, a decision was made to accept Mr Addessi’s offer. “Luckily, it was still available,” Ms Johnson said.

The committee also had to take into consideration the feelings of residents as to where in town the new Christmas tree should be planted. A site at Fairfield Hills was suggested, but unequivocally, said Ms Johnson, townspeople polled said, “It had to go back in Ram Pasture.”

Facing Hawley Pond from Elm Drive, the plan is to place the new tree a little to the right of where the other tree held court for more than 25 years of holiday tradition. “Of course, we don’t know what we will find when we begin to dig,” said Ms Johnson, “and that could affect where we have to plant the tree.”

Christmas Tree Committee member Dan Dalton of Growing Concerns, an organic land care company, will oversee the moving, planting, and subsequent care of the spruce. “We’ll be using the service of Jeff Davenport and New England Tree Movers to move the tree,” said Mr Dalton. Mr Davenport will use a tree spade, a vehicle equipped with a series of shovel-type blades that encircle the tree, dig in, and remove a giant ice cream cone-shaped ball from the earth. The tree and root ball will tip up over the top of the truck for transport from its growing spot at the corner of Mt Nebo and Oxhill Road to Ram Pasture.

Even though the tree is being donated, the committee still expects to incur costs of between $8,000 and $10,000 dollars, Ms Johnson said. New wiring will have to be placed underneath Elm Drive, and 60 feet of one-inch conduit piping, much like an underground hose, and a pump from Hawley Pond will be installed in order that the newly planted spruce will have enough water to thrive in the warmer months.

“Water is a critical thing for the survivability of the tree,” said Mr Dalton. “The site in Ram Pasture is probably fairly wet, but we need supplemental water for at least a season or two.” Having enough moisture, he explained, will ensure that the disturbed root system will regenerate.

 “We used to have aerial wires from the service box to the tree,” said Stan Perrone of Kesco Electric, a Christmas Tree Committee member who is handling the wiring issues for the committee. “The new tree, being smaller, can’t support that, so we are going to be doing something even better. We will be going underground to a concrete pad and outdoor enclosure that will hold the electrical equipment and the new timing mechanism,” he said. The timing mechanism will conserve electricity and allow the lights to be turned on and off automatically for set periods.

While aerial wires will disappear from the tree for electricity, it will probably be necessary to “guy” the tree, Mr Dalton said. Metal support cables will run from the tree to anchors in the ground in order to stabilize the new transplant and protect it from winds until the tree is established, most likely after the first year.

The committee will also need to buy new lights for the tree. In recent years, newer lighting technology made it possible to leave the lights up year around rather than taking them down and replacing them annually. But when a huge tree comes crashing to the ground, wiring and lights have got to be replaced. Other costs associated with the moving of the tree and planting of it will need to be addressed, as well, said Ms Johnson.

All in all, though, it is almost a blessing that the former tree blew down when it did, Ms Johnson said. “It was so rotted inside. What if it had happened in September or October? We would have had a season without a Christmas tree for the tree lighting.”