Nation's Christmas Tree is home grown

This year’s “People’s Tree,” the U.S. Capitol Christmas Tree, is coming from North Idaho’s backyard, the Nez Perce-Clearwater National Forest. 

Ariel Rodriguez, a law enforcement officer with the U.S. Forest Service/Department of Agriculture for District 1, is among the group that will escort the tree from its secret home to Washington, D.C.

“I think it's amazing that you get to be a part of something you get to celebrate,” Rodriguez said. 

This marks the third time Idaho has supplied a Capitol Christmas tree: the first was an Engelmann Spruce from the Boise National Forest in 2003. The second was another Engelmann Spruce from the Payette National Forest in 2016.

After harvest, which will happen in late October, Rodriguez and the tree will make “whistle stops” in towns, cities and villages across Idaho and the country to give people a chance to take photos with it, buy merchandise and learn about public lands and Idaho forests. It will be decorated with thousands of handmade ornaments made by Idahoans. 

“You get to bring the Christmas Tree to the capitol, and everyone gets to come out and see it,” she said.

The new tree was selected after the original choice, an 80-foot Grand Fir also from the Nez Perce-Clearwater National Forest, began showing signs of Needlecast Disease, according to previous reporting by KTVB Boise. 

Rodriguez said selecting an Idaho tree has been years in the making. She said an architect will fly in from Washington, D.C., and pick 6-12 trees. Those trees are monitored for years. 

Once the trees are ready for harvest, they will select one and cut it down. Then it is taken to a secure location, where it is guarded, a trailer is built around it, it is given a water bag, and it begins the journey across the U.S. 

The escort job is not a small one, Rodriguez said. She said escorts will keep their lights on the entire way to keep traffic away from the trailer. She added that the tree will be stored in secure locations during non-travel or non-visiting hours.

“Then we’ll come back in the morning and pick it up, and we start on the road again,” Rodriguez said. 

The three-to-four-week journey ends in Washington, D.C., when Rodriguez and the other escorts hand the tree to Capitol Police, and the festivities begin. 

“The senators come out and everybody sees it and they tell the story, it’s amazing,” she said.

The Capitol Christmas Tree will make eight stops along its route through Idaho: 

• Thursday, Oct. 29: Grangeville, Idaho

• Friday, Oct. 30: Lewiston, Idaho

• Saturday, Oct. 31: Moscow, Idaho

• Sunday, Nov. 1: Orofino, Idaho and Kamiah, Idaho

• Tuesday, Nov. 3: Lolo, Montana

• Wednesday, Nov. 4: Salmon, Idaho

• Thursday, Nov. 5: Craters of the Moon National Monument, Idaho and Twin Falls, Idaho

• Friday, Nov. 6: Idaho Falls, Idaho

All events and festivities are free and open to the public. You can find the full route for the tree on the U.S. Capitol Christmas Tree website.

Info: www.uscapitolchristmastree.com