December 25th is Christmas Day. Many Americans are busy
with Christmas and the winter holiday season. Buying a Christmas tree is one
important part of the holiday. Christmas trees come in all shapes (形状) and
sizes. Maybe the most famous is the large Christmas tree near the White House in
Washington, D.C. If you believe that Christmas trees come from forests (森林), you
are wrong; most trees are carefully grown on farms. Farmers plant and sell
Christmas trees just as they grow fruits or vegetables. About thirty-three
million Christmas trees are sold in North America each year. It can take as many
as fifteen years to grow a tree as high as two meters, but the growing time is
usually seven years. Farmers care for the young trees until they are about three
to five years old. Then farmers plant them again in fields. Farmers cut the
highest part of the trees when they do not want them to grow too fast. They also
cut other parts of the trees while the trees are growing. This gives the trees
the shape that people will like. All Christmas trees are left in the fields to grow as tall as they can.