To think the 18th is not ridiculously late to buy a Christmas tree?

[PreRaphaeliteMotherhood]

There appears not to be a single (real) tree in our local area. We tried two garden centres, the greengrocer, and multiple lay-bys (all places that had them earlier in the month). We cannot be the last people to buy a tree. A week before is a totally normal time to put up a tree! I appreciate it’s been a weird year and lots of people have chosen to put them up early but to have none left at all seems quite extreme!

YANBU. My preference is to buy a Christmas tree about a week before Christmas, but as everyone buys theirs ridiculously early and places sell out, we've started having to buy it earlier and earlier each year.

There is a Christmas tree farm near us that allows you to reserve a tree, then go back to collect it later, so we might do that one year - but only when we have enough space for a nice big one. Until then, the slim ones from Homebase will have to do!

One particularly disorganised year we got ours for free from B&Q at 4.30 on Christmas Eve

I bought my tree yesterday in our High Street Garden Centre. There were about half a dozen left. I was surprised they had so few, but it made choosing much easier than usual. I like to leave it up until 12th night, so never want to buy too early.
Brought it in the house today and it is now decorated. Looks lovely!

Not to me, I grew up with a 50p tree bought off the market as the adults came back from the pub Christmas eve. They were so hideous, half dead and lopsided, but somehow magical that it appeared in the night for Christmas morning.

YABU. Nowadays a week before Christmas is extremely late to put up a tree. Majority of people put them up beginning of December.

If you leave it to the last minute then of course you’re going to struggle to get one.

We got our tree last weekend, the place we got it from is sold out now.

Hardly "Last minute" with a week to go
Christmas Eve is last minute. 18th December isn't.

We've only just bought ours, half price.

That's why we wait. Had to persuade DH to even bother. No young dc, who honestly cares?

Try Wickes. They are reduced to £5, and although you can't reserve online there is a stock checker for your local store.

We bought 2 this morning, they were still showing full price but scanned at £5 each. Shows correctly online.

We've been having a garage conversion done and house upside down, if we're lucky we'll get everywhere cleaned up this weekend then can sort the trees out.

Our Local Tesco and Waitrose still have lots

Nope. I always get mine on Christmas Eve. A whopping 8 ft fir for $15 instead of $80!

I haven't changed what I usually do ie buy the tree about ten days before Christmas. We have a lot of garden centres in our neighbourhood so I didn't struggle to get one, but there were noticeably fewer trees left than a 'normal' year.

I've seen lots of even cafes having plenty outside for sale. If I were you I drive through some smaller shopping area outside of city centre.
And YA absolutely NBU.

Of course it's not late. A week before Christmas is a perfectly normal time in my world.
I do agree that this year, more people have started earlier, but, in my world, the end of term is when you start decorating for Christmas.

We joined with the move to an earlier start, this year, and bought ours during this last week - there were plenty available at the Garden Centre we went to, then though.

We've started putting ours up the second weekend in December. I don't like keeping it until twelfth night because it feels depressing, so I like to get my money's worth as a pp said. There were plenty available on the 10th, which is when we bought ours.

We're hoping to get one tomorrow.

I don't think it is late, but people do seem to be getting them earlier and earlier. Last year we tried to get one on the 19th having just arrived in the UK to spend Christmas with my mum and they were all sold out. We ended up getting a free one left over from a school Christmas sale randomly on offer at the side of the road! I think even if you don't want to put it up early it pays to buy one in good time and leave it outside until you are ready (that's effectively what happens in garden centre anyway). Not an option if you live in a flat (as we do here in Paris) obviously, we got one last weekend and put it straight up - there are still loads on sale here though that's probably no help and they are quite pricey (we paid €65 this year which rather cancelled out any effect of the saving on our free one last year ).

Surprisingly Local waitrose had some nice ones 4-5 foot and 5-6 foot today. Cheaper than the garden centre and the scouts.

I went to get mine on the 7th. None in the first 2 places, 2 in the last place. Both smaller than I really wanted. So weird this year.

Are there any Christmas tree farms near you? Google and see if you can get one directly from a grower.

www.greenelftrees.co.uk/

I don’t consider it to be too late . Off to get one tomorrow as have the weekend off .

Usually buy one around 18th Dec (when school finishes) but went out looking at the beginning of this week - all usual places had sold out - in the end we got one from a grower and its fab (but he was sold out yesterday). Really dont want a tree from 1st Dec.

YANBU but I have been caught out in the same way in the past.

I now buy it a fair bit earlier than I would like to put it up, and leave it in the back garden until needed.

When I was a child, the weekend before Xmas would be the norm, whenever that fell. Nowadays it seems to be the beginning of December. Just is, I guess.

I don't want to pay a lot for one hence late purchase