Quick bits: Christmas trees are big business; revival of the Cherokee language; growing tomatoes with less water

Holiday boughs cash in around $3 billion
a year.(Photo by Mourad Saadi, Unsplash)

Oh, Christmas tree, Oh, Christmas tree, How lovely is your profit margin! Chopped, bought or pre-decorated, Christmas trees are big business. "The markup on Christmas trees is around 400% to 500%. That's about the same as a pair of designer jeans or a drink from a hotel minibar," write Jay L. Zagorsky and Patrick Abouchalache for The Conversation. "Multiplying the $80 to $100 price by the 15 million natural trees and 20 million artificial trees sold in 2022 means Christmas trees are roughly a $3 billion business annually — without including any extra money spent on the decorations."

Kansas is so parched that drought covers nearly three-fourths of the state. This past summer was brutally hot and arid, but there are a few drops of good news. "The Kansas Geological Survey reported groundwater levels in the High Plains Aquifer could be sustained for at least one decade in moisture-imperiled areas of western Kansas through pumping reductions of 18% to 32%," reports Tim Carpenter of Successful Farming. "The aquifer, the state's most economically important groundwater resource, published a report summarizing regional conditions and options for prolonging the life of the aquifer."

A documentary still. (Photo by ᎤᎶᎩᎳ /
Schon Duncan via The Daily Yonder)

The Cherokee language faced extinction until younger generations decided that saving it was vital to preserving their cultural identity, reports Kim Kobersmith of The Daily Yonder. Kobersmith interviewed ᎤᎶᎩᎳ / Schon Duncan, a proud member of the United Keetoowah Band of Cherokee Indians, a Cherokee language activist, and co-director of the feature-length film ᏓᏗᏬᏂᏏ (We Will Speak) to discuss the film's history. Duncan said the film showcases Cherokee activists, artists and educators efforts to revive and teach the Cherokee language. To learn what this "new wave" of Cherokee speakers is doing, click here. To watch for new film screenings coming in January/February 2024, click here.

Peace and political opinions don't always go together, but the shared pull of the harvest and a reunion celebration help this rural couple in Chickasaw County, Iowa, come together, offers Jose A. Del Real in his Washington Post immersive read. "Rage wasn’t Verna’s style. She believed in decency. She believed in nurturing community, not sowing division. Her life was animated by gentler questions than the ones at the heart of national politics in 2023: What do people owe one another? When can the past teach us something about ourselves, and when does it blind us to the present?"

There aren't enough tomatoes to go around.
(Photo by Fernando Andrade, Unsplash)

What would french fries be without ketchup? What about hot dogs? Researchers in California don't want Americans to find out. "In the heart of one of the world's top vegetable-growing regions in California, scientists are on a mission to save ketchup," reports Patrick Thomas of The Wall Street Journal. "Plant breeders at the Woodland, Calif., facility of German pharmaceutical and agriculture giant Bayer are testing whether tomatoes meant for processing into pizza sauces and ketchup can survive on a fraction of their traditional water needs, without sacrificing taste or juiciness. . . . Bayer’s tomatoes are one example of how the agriculture industry is now trying to stay ahead of a changing climate that could disrupt the food supply chain and drive up prices for consumers.