Man, 99, still at work 7 decades after opening eastern Ontario Christmas tree farm

This weekend is one of the busiest of the year for Christmas tree farms all over the region as the holidays approach and people start looking for a fresh smell of pine in their homes.

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At Johnston Brothers Tree Farm, located about 71 kilometres south of Ottawa, it's no sweat for founder Pud Johnston.

Johnston is 99-years-old and it's his 72nd season selling Christmas trees.

"I'm 99 and going for 100," he said.

Johnston started the business in 1952 with his brother Eric and they worked alongside each other until he passed away in 2009.

Johnston's son Kerry is now the main operator of the farm but he is still engaged every day, spending Sunday pruning some of the smaller trees.

"I think it's a healthy activity," Johnston said.

"I think it's provided lots of exercise and kept me fit and kept me young, and I wouldn't be 99-years-old now if I hadn't been Christmas tree farming."

Pud didn't start the business until his late 20's but for Kerry, it's all he's known his whole life, cutting his first tree when he was about 8-years-old.

"Ever since then, I've been in the tree business," Kerry said. "I know nothing else apart from growing up on a tree farm."

As for the trees themselves, they can take up to a decade to fully grow. The Johnston's say it takes patience and discipline to run a Christmas tree farm.

The Johnston Brothers Tree Farm allows customers to either cut their own trees or choose from the wholesale section. Trees start at $80 with the price depending on the size.

Some of the trees on the lot can grow up to 20 feet.

Because they've been established in the community for so long, it's allowed them to build a strong clientele, despite customers only needing to visit once per year.

"Generally, our business is steady, It's the same people," said Kerry. "They come here because the trees are good. It's a different experience."

Christmas trees at Johnston Brothers Tree farm near Kemptville, Ont. on Dec. 8, 2024. (Jack Richardson/CTV News Ottawa)

Picking out a tree at the farm has become a tradition for Lisa Haddow-Green, her husband Mike and their 5-year-old son Jack.

"We came here our first year with Jack when he was just a baby," she said. "So, we make it a tradition to come here every year."

Brockville, Ont. resident Jackson Traynor has cut down a tree here with his dad and sister every Christmas for over 20 years. They say it wouldn't be the holidays without a real tree in their home.

"It's just part of the tradition at this point," he said, after cutting down a tree that stood about six feet tall.

"Something about the smell of a fresh Christmas tree and the process of you coming out here and you spend way too long picking the right one."

Family is what drives Kerry to continue the operation for years to come, just like his dad.

"It's been a long tradition that we've all worked together for as long as we can remember. And that will continue through my children and hopefully their children," Kerry said.