EAST BUFFALO TOWNSHIP -- An annual holiday tradition is underway in central Pennsylvania: the big Christmas tree and wreath auction in Union County.
Friday, the trees will be sold to the highest bidder. Thursday, the wreaths went on the auction block.
Decorated holiday wreaths of all shapes and sizes were auctioned off at the Buffalo Valley Produce Auction near Mifflinburg.
“It just gets me excited. I make my own wreaths so it gets me excited for the season," said Karen Mensch from Mifflinburg.
Some folks came to get in to the holiday spirit, but the auction also draws hundreds of buyers and sellers from out of state, like Cary Nalls from Virginia.
"It's like going to a poker game. Everyone is here to win,” said Cary Nalls.
Nalls came to sell trees but also did some buying. He says he comes to the auction every year.
"Something over 20 since they started selling trees here," said Nalls.
They haven't even made it to the main event which is auctioning off all these Christmas trees.
Organizers say they have received fewer trees this year compared to years past, which means they expect the price of the bundles to go up.
"A lot of the out of state growers or farmers that grow trees, they are getting pretty good money in their area so they didn't need to ship them quite as far this year to sell them here," said Ryan Herrold, office manager.
Organizers say they have about 50,000 trees this year. That’s compared to last year when they had around 80,000. They expect to sell the trees for about 5 or 10 dollars more. Some buyers say it's worth it.
"This is probably one of the best ground collections you'll find anywhere,"
"This is the best place in the world. It's the world’s biggest Christmas tree auction,"
The big Christmas tree auction begins at 8 a.m. on Friday near Mifflinburg.
