DIDSBURY, Alta. – It was a warm fall day when Pim van Oeveren set up the Christmas tree in The Blooming Fields teahouse he and his wife, Mary-Ann, run near Didsbury.
A decorated white pine tree in a 10 gallon pot will return to the winter greenhouse after the holiday season.
“There are no needles,” said Mary-Ann.
The Alberta foothills shone in the sunlight and the grass was still green but the annual Christmas open house in November went ahead as planned.
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The 27 acre tree nursery and market garden celebrates its fifth anniversary this year and a Christmas open house has become part of the farm’s tradition. The tearoom and on-farm store were added to give people time to relax and shop.
Yuletide items purchased at trade shows last February and August were displayed and after customers finished their coffee and Dutch pastries, there was a steady lineup to buy embroidered tapestry stockings, tree ornaments and homemade jams.
Christmas fashion trends lean toward silk fabrics this year but the van Oeverens also offered traditional items in Christmas colours.
“People really like traditions with the reds and the whites. People like the comfort of traditional stuff,” said Mary-Ann.
Food comes from the garden and other local suppliers and is served in afternoon high tea style with recipes from Holland as well as Mary-Ann’s creations, including a rhubarb cake with caramel sauce and ice cream.
Visitors come mainly from the Calgary-Red Deer area but the guest book lists addresses from across Canada and Australia.
While October and the beginning of November were unseasonably warm, setting record temperatures in central and southern Alberta, the summer was less predictable. Strawberry and raspberry plants froze in late August but the saskatoon harvest was ample for the van Oeverens.
“This fall, we had so much fruit, I decided to make my own jams,” she said.
