The Christmas tree season in northern Baltimore and Harford counties starts on Saturday, November 21, five days before Thanksgiving. It starts with fewer saws in the fields closest to Monkton. Hale Tree Farm in White Hall is closed for the whole 2026 season. Hickory Hill in Street is offering pre-cut trees for 2026 while it replenishes its seedlings. Both farms point to the same reason, which is that the trees need more time.
So the cutting moves elsewhere this year. It goes to Upperco and Street farms that have posted 2026 dates, and it starts on two different days. If you're planning around Black Friday, you may be planning around the wrong weekend.
A Farm That Planted for 2027
Hale Tree Farm at 4827 Norrisville Road in White Hall put its plans for the season in its headline: "Closed for 2026, Growing for 2027." The family says it is closing for the 2026 Christmas season "to give our younger trees another year to grow." It also says it plans to welcome visitors back in 2027.
Hale has been part of this corner of the county since its first season in 1990. It describes itself as a "no-frills, Clark Griswold experience" with three tree varieties and customers from both Maryland and Pennsylvania. The Maryland Christmas Tree Association directory lists the farm with choose-and-cut trees, pre-cut trees and concessions. That's the full holiday stop that's missing from Norrisville Road this year.
Hickory Hill Stays Open and Sells Pre-Cut
Over the Harford County line, Hickory Hill at 3123 Copenhaver Road in Street is open but changing how it sells. The farm says that in 2026 it has "a beautiful selection of fresh pre-cut trees while we try to replenish our seedlings."
Visitors can still pick out a tree in person. Hickory Hill also takes online orders and offers curbside pickup and local delivery. It sells Fraser and Douglas firs along with wreaths, roping and locally made candle rings and arrangements. The farm's site says opening day is the weekend before Thanksgiving.
So two farms near Monkton are working around the same problem in the same year: their young trees need more time in the ground.
Why a Tree Farm Takes a Season Off
The math behind this comes from University of Maryland Extension. Its guide for growers says a seedling generally takes 7 to 12 years to reach harvest size. A tree cut this December was likely planted around the time a child now in middle school was born.
The same guide notes that choose-and-cut farms can leave unsold trees in the ground for another year. It also lists the problems that can make trees unsaleable: drought, frost, insects, disease and wildlife damage. A farm's supply of tall trees is fixed years ahead. When a farm runs short, the only fix is to wait.
Either way, the full-size trees closest to Monkton are fewer this year. The farms that do have them are setting the calendar.
The Season Opens the Saturday Before Thanksgiving
These are the farms that have posted 2026 dates, in the order they open:
- Saturday, November 21: Davidson Christmas Tree Farm, 1101 Emory Church Road, Upperco. Cut-your-own runs from November 21 through December 23, and the precut lot stays open through December 24. Hours are noon to 5 p.m. Monday through Thursday and 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday through Sunday. The fields close at 4:30 p.m. The farm is closed Thanksgiving Day.
- Friday, November 27: Jarrettsville Nurseries, 1041 Holy Cross Road, Street. Opens at 9 a.m. on Black Friday. Weekend hours are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., and weekday hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. The farm stays open until inventory sells out.
- Friday, November 27: Fair Chance Farm, 16776 Gorsuch Mill Road, Upperco. Opens at 9:30 a.m. on Black Friday, then every Saturday and Sunday after Thanksgiving.
Davidson's head start is the detail to plan around. It opens six days before the other two, on the Saturday before Thanksgiving. Davidson grows a wide mix that includes Douglas, Fraser, Balsam, Canaan and Concolor firs, Norway, Serbian and Colorado Blue spruce, and White Pine. It also sells precut Fraser firs, wreaths, roping, swags and stands, and serves refreshments in its barn on weekends.
The two Black Friday farms are built for different kinds of afternoons. Jarrettsville Nurseries adds Santa, a food truck, hayrides and local vendors on weekends, with cocoa in the barn. Pets must stay on a leash. Fair Chance is quieter. It sells choose-and-cut trees, wreaths, tree accessories and locally made greens, with hot chocolate and cookies.
Closer to Monkton, along Jarrettsville Pike, Ruhl's Tree Farm at 14430 Jarrettsville Pike in Phoenix lists choose-and-cut on Black Friday and weekends, 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. A phone call before loading the car is a good idea.
Greens Without a Field
Not every household needs a saw to decorate. The greens that might have come from Hale's barn this year have another local source in December. It's back at Ladew Topiary Gardens, whose regular garden season ended October 31.
A Ladew Christmas brings back the Holiday Greens Sale in the Barn Gallery. The sale includes handcrafted tabletop arrangements, wreaths, holiday decorations, potted herb standards and live potted plants. The same evenings include a Christmas market, a holiday menu at the Ladew Cafe and seasonal music. Floral designers and garden clubs decorate each room of the Manor House with fresh flowers and greenery, and it stays open into the evening.
Admission requires tickets. Public sales open Monday, November 9, at 9 a.m. Members could start buying on November 2, with a limit of six tickets per membership.
| Date | Hours | Adults | Children 2–12 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Member Preview Night, Tuesday, Dec. 8 | 5–8 p.m. | $15 member, $25 non-member guest | $4 member, $6 non-member guest |
| Wednesday, Dec. 9 through Saturday, Dec. 12 | 3–7 p.m. | $15 member, $25 non-member | $4 member, $6 non-member |
Two practical notes come from Ladew's event page. Not every room in the 18th-century Manor House is wheelchair accessible, and strollers aren't allowed inside the house. The event runs on four weekdays and one Saturday. Families who want a weekend visit have only December 12, so that date is likely to go first once the November 9 sale opens.
Where the Afternoon Ends
A tree run north of Baltimore usually ends with a warm stop on the way home, and Monkton's farm brewery is open on tree-season days. Inverness Brewing at 16200 Markoe Road is open Thursday through Sunday, noon to 8 p.m., all year. It closes only on Christmas Day.
Inverness has live music on its November 2026 calendar most Fridays and Saturdays from 4 to 8 p.m. and most Sundays from 3 to 7 p.m. The lineup includes David Sparrow on Friday, November 6, and closes the month with Chris Montcalmo on Sunday, November 29, the Sunday of Black Friday weekend.
The library has its own December stop. Baltimore County Public Library's Pints & Pages meets at Black Locust Hops Farm Brewery, 21305 Heathcote Road in Freeland, on Thursday, December 3, from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m.
Hale's rows, meanwhile, get one more year to grow before the farm reopens in 2027.
When I appraised homes in northern Baltimore County, I saw how much of Monkton's character comes from working farms that run on their own long schedules. Hale's year off is a good example. If you want to talk about how the farms and open land around Monkton shape life and home values here, Carolina Cronin is glad to help. Let's Connect.
