The 2025 Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree Has Been Picked - Here's Where It's Coming From

Before you know it, the holiday season arrives with fanfare across America. The Rockefeller Center in New York City is gearing up for a fantastic Christmas display with the selection of the tree that will grace the center of the plaza starting in November. This year, a gorgeous Norway spruce (Picea abies) has been selected from a property in East Greenbush, New York, a suburb of Albany. After being cut down, the tree will travel 130 miles before it takes its place as the shining centerpiece of New York City's Christmas season.

Not just any tree will make the cut. The chosen tree needs to have the ideal Christmas tree shape, with a symmetrical pyramid shape and full, bushy branches. The 2025 tree is an estimated 75 years old, stands 75 feet tall, and was kindly donated by the Russ family. It was also picked personally by the Rockefeller Center's head gardener and carefully cared for in the year leading up to its sparkling debut. And if you've ever wondered how many lights you need on your Christmas tree, it's a safe bet that this massive tree uses much more. Over 50,000 LED lights will be carefully wrapped around it before the lighting ceremony.

While not as tall as the record-setting 100-foot-tall Norway spruce from 1999, this year's specimen is still a fairly gigantic tree to be transporting and lighting. Even when you have a smaller one in your home, it can be a chore to figure out what to do with your Christmas tree after the holiday. But the Rockefeller Center already has a plan in place to make this iconic tradition sustainable.This year's tree is scheduled to be milled down and donated to Habitat for Humanity after it comes down in mid-January.

Nearly every Rockefeller Center tree since 1934 has been a Norway spruce, although the inaugural tree was a balsam fir (Abies balsamea) and the occasional white spruce (Picea glauca) has been chosen for the honor. Native to Europe, Norway spruces make excellent Christmas trees due to their beautiful deep green color, impressive height, and rapid growth.

These trees have been spread by human activity around the world, including in the U.S. They are especially well-established in the northeastern part of the country in states like New York (where most Rockefeller Center trees originate), Pennsylvania, and Vermont. They are hardy in zones 2 through 7. However, Norway spruces have been listed as invasive in several states, including West Virginia and Virginia, so unfortunately you should avoid growing them if you live in any of those areas. 

Because Norway spruces are a fast-growing privacy tree you can enjoy year-round, you have a decent incentive to grow one in your yard. The young tree grows rapidly, and once it gets going, it could get to the 75-foot height of this year's Rockefeller tree in about 50 years. That means you might expect a tree planted in 2025 to be ready to adorn the Center Plaza in the year 2075. It may be time to get to planting if you want to stand a chance for that, but for the average home, a Norway spruce will typically be mature and ready for use as a Christmas tree in about seven to 10 years.