Folly Beach’s unique “u-cut” Christmas tree farm a block from the ocean
by Jenny Peterson | Current Staff Writer
If you drive by the address 112 East Ashley Ave. during the holiday season, you may do a double take: Roughly 140 Frasier Fir Christmas trees are planted in a Folly Beach front yard, a Christmas Tree Farm re-creation, one block from the ocean.
While many locals choose their Christmas trees from under a tent at various popups along the side of the road, Andy and Tara McClellan have a unique setup for those looking for fresh Frasier Firs—they turn their front yard on Folly Beach into “Mama Jean’s Christmas Tree Farm.”
For the past 15 years, the couple has rented a 26-foot-long truck and traveled to Jefferson, N.C. to collect freshly-cut trees to bring back to Folly Beach.
Andy uses an auger to make holes in their front yard (Tara says it takes four minutes per hole) and the couple “plants” the trees so customers can experience a bit of Christmas magic and a “u-cut” feel.
“Our front yard looks like a Christmas tree farm. It’s really cool. Families come out to pick out their trees and the kids run through the yard and we pass out candy canes,” said Tara.
The trees are priced by size, ranging from $50 to $250. There are also fresh holiday wreaths for sale from the Western North Carolina tree farm. The McClellans sell the trees seven days a week from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., casually peering out their window to see if anyone is perusing the farm.
Usually, about 80 trees are planted at a time, and as people buy them, more trees are planted in their place. Yet, Tara said this year, Andy planted them all, creating a Christmas tree forest that has enticed many pedestrians with its scent of Frasier Firs and unique setup. The location is perfect, as it is adjacent to a parking lot that is closed during November and December.
“We had the parking lot and thought, ‘Wouldn’t it be cool to sell Christmas trees at Christmas?’ We looked into it, and everybody agreed on it, and we said, ‘Let’s give it a try,’ and it went pretty well,” Tara recalls. The name Mama Jean’s is named for Andy’s mother, who still runs the business.
“Fifteen years later, here we are, and we’re still doing it. We love it. We love the people we’ve met—so many wonderful people,” Tara said.
Tara notes that each year, they see many repeat customers—and recently had a generational customer who was 15 years old when he first came to the farm with his parents, who recently brought his newborn son to choose a tree.
As involved members of the Folly Beach community, the McClellans donate a Christmas tree for the “Tree of Life” community tree that’s set up on the sand at the second block east access that anyone can decorate. The tree is placed on the front beach near where the McClellan family lived for generations.
“That piece of property is special to the McClellan family; Andy’s parents lived on that block and that’s where they looked out every morning when they woke up. It’s very special,” Tara said.
The McClellans set up another special Christmas tree on Folly Beach: In their yard, it’s the only tree that is decorated, in honor of those who have passed away.
“We call it the ‘Christmas tree in Heaven,’” Tara said. “If people would like to bring a laminated picture of a loved one who has passed, they can come hang it on the tree. It’s up front on the property—a tree with all of our ‘angels.’”
Western North Carolina Love
In late September, Hurricane Helene devastated large swaths of Western North Carolina. While the Christmas tree farm the McClellans use was spared, this year, before driving up with their rented truck, the McClellans put out a request to the Charleston community about donating supplies to those in Western North Carolina who were impacted by Hurricane Helene.
“We connected with a church that was five miles from the tree farm that was accepting donations. We posted on a Facebook page that we were going to have the truck here for people to come load it to take donations up to the church and it was amazing how much love our community had here and how much time and effort and money they put in to load that truck for the people in North Carolina,” Tara said, also annoucing it in their ad in The Folly Current.
In addition to helping customers select their perfect tree to drive away with, The McClellans offer free local Christmas tree delivery on Folly Beach and you can even “rent” a tree, setting it up in a home or rental home and take it down after the season. They often sell out before Christmas and spend the month of December meeting customers and Christmas tree enthusiasts alike.
“I thought we had customers in the yard the other day and I went outside to help them, and they said, ‘Oh, no, we’ll be back in December to get our tree. We just wanted to come smell them now,’” Tara said.
The McClellan Christmas Tree Farm is located at 112 East Ashley Ave., open for business from 9 a.m. until 9 p.m. seven days a week until sold out. Trees vary in price based on size. Cash or check only.
