TAKE ONE
Gardener News Serving the Agricultural, Gardening and Landscaping Communities
December, 2015
GARDENERNEWS.COM
TAKE ONE No. 152
From New York State to NYC
Tom Castronovo/Photos
By Tom Castronovo Executive Editor This year’s worldfamous Rockefeller Center Christmas tree was harvested from the property of Albert Asendorf and Nancy Puchalski in Gardiner, Ulster County, N.Y. It was put on a custommade truck and flatbed trailer for the 80-mile trip to midtown Manhattan. In 1958, when Albert was 4 years old, his family moved into a house with a six-foot Norway spruce in the front yard. Over the years, both the Asendorf family and the tree have grown. Albert’s father, a nature lover and outdoorsman, looked after and pruned the spruce over the decades, helping give it the perfect
Christmas tree shape. But more recently, its size had begun to overwhelm the yard. Last year, a family decision was made to submit the approximately 80-year old spruce online to Rockefeller Center. A few months later, Rockefeller Center’s Head Gardener Erik Pauze showed up to see the tree in person. The 78-foot tall, 74-foot in diameter, 10-ton tree began its journey on Wednesday, November 4. It made its official arrival on Friday morning, November 6, in Rockefeller Center. Nancy Puchalski, Albert’s partner of 22 years says, “Christmas is always a big holiday for us. Knowing our tree is being used as a holiday symbol for so many people will make this year’s festivities even more memorable for our family.”
Albert’s father passed away a few years ago and there is a picture of a spruce tree and a bird on his tombstone. Albert said that his dad loved the tree and thought he would have really gotten a kick out of seeing the tree in New York City. “There are decades of family memories with this tree,” said Albert. “I have a feeling seeing the tree lit in Rockefeller Center will be the highlight – and I am sure my father will be watching.” The beautifully shaped spruce will be lit for the first time on Wednesday, December 2, in the Rockefeller Plaza, between West 48th and West 51st Streets and Fifth and Sixth Avenues. It will be decorated with more than 45,000 multicolored, energy-efficient
LED lights strung over five miles of wire. Hundreds of solar panels help power the lights. The tree will be topped with a crystal star from Swarovski. The 9.5-feet in diameter and 1.5-feet deep star is adorned with 25,000 crystals and one million facets. The tree will stay lit on the plaza until Jan. 7. It will then be milled into lumber for Habitat for Humanity. In 1931, construction workers building Rockefeller Center put up the first-ever Rockefeller Center Christmas tree. Rockefeller Center officially began the Tree Lighting Ceremony in 1933. Christmas trees in Rockefeller Center have ranged from 50-foot pines to 100-foot Norway spruces and have been viewed by
approximately 2,500,000 spectators annually. The decorations and lighting effects have covered a variety of colors and schemes, including one year when the tree was painted silver. Editor’s Note: Tom Castronovo is executive editor and publisher of Gardener News. Tom’s lifelong interest in gardening and passion for agriculture, environmental stewardship, gardening and landscaping, led to the founding of the Gardener News, which germinated in April 2003 and continues to bloom today. He is also dedicated to providing inspiration, and education to the agricultural, gardening and landscaping communities through this newspaper and GardenerNews.com.