Zachary Cook, 4, squealed earlier this week as he raced up and down rows of Christmas trees at Hall’s Christmas Tree Farm in Sangerville.

With one glove on and the other off, the New Mexico youngster occasionally jumped out from behind a tree and gleefully tossed snow at his sisters, Jennifer, 16, and Aimee, 13.

Their parents, Richard and Margaret Cook of New Mexico, and grandparents, Everett and Freda Cook of Milo, were after the perfect tree to grace the elder Cooks’ home. They found it – a 5-foot conical-shaped tree that was fragrant. The visiting family will help put up and decorate the tree before leaving shortly after Thanksgiving.

It is that time of year when Christmas tree growers share the fruits of their labor for a custom that dates back to ancient Romans. According to historical accounts, the Christmas tree was introduced in the United States during the War of Independence by Hessian troops. American soldiers reportedly set up a Christmas tree at Fort Dearborn, Ill., the site of Chicago, in 1804.

From there, the custom has grown so much that Christmas tree sales this year in Maine will exceed $4 million, according to George Tinkham of Sebago, president of the Maine Christmas Tree Growers Association. The purchase of fresh Christmas trees from farm stands helps the local economy, he said. Precut trees sell on average from $15 to $35, depending on how tall and well-shaped they are.

Tinkham figures there are about 200 Christmas tree growers in the state, and of them, about 150 are association members. Combined, the growers tend to about 4,000-5,000 acres of Christmas trees, he said Tuesday.

Growers will have a concentrated season this year because Thanksgiving is celebrated later in the month than usual, Tinkham said. Despite that, he predicts a good year.

“I think it will be great – all the trees look good,” Tinkham said.

The association official said the state experienced good rainfall this spring and last, and there was plenty of precipitation last month that provided nourishment to the trees, which take about 8-9 years to grow to optimum height.

Cynthia Hall, co-owner of Hall’s Christmas Tree Farms in East Sangerville, said the drought-like conditions last winter and summer caused some trees to be stressed. When Balsam fir is stressed, it produces lots of cones. These cones must be removed by hand from the trees during the growing process or else they tend to fall apart and appear as “nasty-like wheaties” on the branches, she said. Despite the extra work, Hall expects this year to be a good one, both for local sales and the wholesale market.

Hall and her husband, Toby, plant 100 acres of Christmas trees each year and cut about 10,000 trees, most of which are sold to wholesale markets in New York, Rhode Island, Massachusetts and Connecticut. The wholesale buyers are typically organizations such as fire departments and Kiwanis clubs that sell the trees to raise funds, she said.

Another Piscataquis County grower, Jim LaCasce of Finestkind Tree Farms on Route 15 in Dover-Foxcroft, suspects that trees might be in short supply for the wholesale market this year. He said some Maine Christmas tree growers cut their production because of a glut that caused prices to drop about 12 years ago. Somewhat discouraged, LaCasce said he cut his Christmas tree acreage in half and now, like the Halls, plants about 100 acres and cuts about 10,000 trees each season.

“It’s turned around finally,” LaCasce said.

He and the Halls open their farm stands the day after Thanksgiving and offer customers an opportunity to cut their own Christmas tree or to purchase a precut one. They also offer garlands and wreaths.

“We started cutting Nov. 4 and are now loading the tractor-trailer trucks for shipment [out of state],” Hall said, this week.

The trees soaked up lots of water during the nice, moist fall so they are heavy with moisture and will tend to keep well, Hall said. She explained that uncut trees start to dehydrate when colder weather arrives to survive the winter, so she recommends that people who buy their trees later in the season place the base of the tree in hot tap water and store it in a cool place to rehydrate.

Cook of Milo, who has purchased a fresh tree from the Halls for many years, is familiar with the process.

“We prefer the Fraser fir because the needle retention is much better,” he said, as he watched his grandchildren enjoy their first visit to a Christmas tree farm. The Fraser fir also has a silver tinge on the bottom that glitters when lights are applied, he said.

His granddaughter Jennifer added, “I’ve never smelled anything better.”