A GIFT SEED

Accelerated Genetic Improvement of Fir Through
Sequencing, Economics, Extension, & Diagnostics

About A GIFT SEED

Background

Christmas trees generate $2.5 billion dollars annually in the United States, with fir trees making up approximately 66% of the industry. While Christmas tree make up a strong portion of trees grown for a consumer market, they are one of the least domesticated agricultural products in the United States. This can cause many issues for growers, and it increases the need for selection for disease and pest resistance, durability, height and growth efficiency, and aesthetic qualities like aroma and shape.

Christmas trees are highly undomesticated relative to other staple agricultural products in the U.S., resulting in a much longer, higher-stakes growing cycle that is unideal for growers in the industry.

With competition of the artificial tree industry, as well as the positive environmental impacts Christmas tree farms can have as carbon sequestration reservoirs and greenhouse gas sinks, there is a pressing need for improvements that will promote real Christmas trees to consumers while also increasing efficiency and success for growers. Planting genetically improved Christmas trees provides much promise for the industry, providing added value to both farmers and consumers.

Our Mission

The goal of A GIFT SEED is to extend genetic improvement for fir (Abies spp.) by accelerating the domestication process, and delivering increased value to the U.S. Christmas tree industry through a transdisciplinary, systems-based approach.

Involving nine world-class research institutions and several collaborators across four different countries, A GIFT SEED is a global-scale project that ultimately aims to further the U.S. Christmas tree industry through researching and evaluating the many aspects that feed into its success: scientific progress, agricultural practice, economics, and grower and consumer engagement.

These aspects make up A GIFT SEED’s five core objectives:

Genetic Improvement & Production