The business of wreath making

At Triple V Ranch on the Brooklyn Road in Yarmouth fir-tip harvesters and wreath makers pulled on their gloves to start work the first week of November.

Co-owner Louie Vacon says they employ approximately 50 people at their shop, in addition to those who collect brush and make wreaths at their own homes. “The work is piecemeal,” he explained. Workers make $1.25 for each wreath made with supplied fir tips on site, but those who complete wreaths at homes with their own brush are paid $2.

In a large, cool room at the Triple V Ranch headquarters, occasional clunks can be heard as men and women work steadily at fastening handfuls of fir with wire around 12-inch frames, flipping and turning the circle as they go. There are large mounds of evergreen tips on each table and the wonderful fragrance of balsam is heavy in the air. Close to four pounds of tips are required for each wire base.

It takes some workers only five or six minutes to complete a wreath. “We have some who can make 100 wreaths a day,” said Vacon, whose father started selling wreaths in the 1950’s. A shipment of four-foot creations was even sent to the White House.

The company provides craftspeople with guidelines, including tips on common wreath construction errors: allowing the ring base to show, cutting fir tips too long or short, a lack of uniformity, and not pulling the wire tight enough. The most prevalent error is not ending the wreath correctly by overlapping the fir tips.

In good quality wreaths, the wire cannot be seen. The wreath is compact and sturdy and has a distinct, round hole in the center.

A tip to remember for homeowners is that wreaths will last much longer if hung in a cool area.

Each year Triple V Ranch ships 20,000 to 30,000 wreaths to Ontario and a broker in Boston, who sends these traditional symbols of Christmas across the U.S.