Tree lot operators getting jump on busy season

It’s still the season of pumpkins, but on Thursday, the Kesler family spent hours stringing lights and posting signs for an east Modesto Christmas tree lot.

The Keslers are not jumping on the retail bandwagon of promoting Christmas just after – or before – Labor Day. The tree lot, located on Oakdale Road at Wylie Drive, won’t be open until November, Bonnie Kesler said.

Normally, the Keslers are selling pumpkins on the lot this time of year. But after a busy season at the family’s fruit stand in Westley, they decided to take a break, Kesler said.

She and John Kesler, with the help of some others, went out to the lot to get a jump on preparations for the busy holiday season.

As for what that season will hold, Bonnie Kesler said it’s too early to tell if the California drought will have any effect on Christmas tree prices this year. Many of the trees sold locally come from Oregon, however, where rain was more plentiful.

This story was originally published October 23, 2014 at 7:32 PM with the headline "Tree lot operators getting jump on busy season."