Mini Xmas trees boom as our house sizes shrink

SHRINKING home sizes have seen a surge in demand for miniature Christmas trees.

One of the biggest sellers of fresh-cut trees has seen a 300 per cent rise in sales of dwarf tree types such as the Picea Conica. The tree is normally small, less than 3ft, which means there is no danger of it taking over the living room.

The demand has been noticed by Wyevale Garden Centres, which has 148 outlets.

Its Christmas trees expert, David Mitchell, said: ‘With house sizes shrinking, the big trend over the past few years has been towards slimmer, smaller trees.’ The company has brought in extra Swedish-style Nordmann Firs, which are slimmer with fewer branches.

Mr Mitchell also said demand had been boosted by families who had a main Christmas tree also wanting a small extra one.

He added: ‘Our smaller varieties currently account for over 25 per cent of total Christmas tree sales across the centres, with complementary miniature tree types such as the Picea Conica becoming an increasingly popular add-on purchase, up 300 per cent on sales.’