Quick answer: the closest Pittsburgh Christmas tree farms to the South Hills are Simmons Farm in McMurray, Trax Farms in Finleyville, Candle Tree Farm in Washington, and Lone Oak Farm in Monongahela. If you are willing to drive north or west, Nutbrown’s in Carnegie, Hozak Farms in Clinton, and Grupp’s in Harmony are all worth the trip.
There is a particular Saturday every December that my family protects. Everyone is slightly underdressed for the weather, somebody is negotiating about which tree, and we come home smelling like pine with cold hands around a mug of something. It is not a sophisticated tradition. It is just a good one.
So this is the list I actually use, sorted by how far you have to drive, because with small children that is the thing that decides everything.
Closest to the South Hills
Simmons Farm — McMurray
The one most Peters Township families end up at, because it is right here. Trees run from tabletop size up past fourteen feet, and the farm store carries wreaths, planters and stands alongside the local produce and pies you already go there for. There are two spots, the store on Route 19 and the farm itself, so it is worth checking which has what before you set out.
If you were at Simmons for the pumpkins this autumn, you already know the drill. I put them on my guide to fall in the South Hills for the same reason.
Trax Farms — Finleyville
A hundred and fifty years in the same family, now run by the seventh generation of them. You can cut your own from late November, generally in the seven to ten foot range, and there are wreaths and greenery all season. The bakery and deli are the real argument for going. It is the rare tree errand that comes with lunch.
Candle Tree Farm — Washington
A straightforward, well run farm, and a good one if you want the whole ritual rather than just the tree. A wagon ride out to the fields, your pick of Scotch pine, Douglas fir, concolor fir, white pine, and blue or Norway spruce. Once you have cut it, they shake it, wrap it and help you load it, and there is hot chocolate waiting. They sell wreaths too.
Lone Oak Farm — Monongahela
A full service farm out in the Monongahela river valley, a mile or so from the Eat ‘n Park in Monongahela and close to exit 44 of the Mon Valley Expressway. Fraser, Douglas, concolor, Canaan, Norway spruce and Scotch pine. You can cut your own, or have one of them cut it for you, which is the detail that matters when you are holding a toddler and have no free hands.
Worth the drive
Nutbrown’s Christmas Tree Farm — Carnegie
The closest of the farms north of us, and the easiest to fold into a Saturday. Good variety, fresh pine in the air, and the kind of simple, authentic feel that makes children want to come back next year.
Nutbrown’s Christmas Tree Farm
Hozak Farms — Clinton
The one I hear about most from other families, and it does sound lovely. A hayride out to the field, saws provided, and they shake and bale the tree for you. White pine, Fraser, concolor, Douglas, Canaan and spruce. The Christmas Barn is its own reason to go, full of decorations, antiques and gifts, and more than one family has done a chunk of their shopping there by accident.
Grupp’s Christmas Trees — Harmony
The one that looks like the picture in your head. Rows of evergreens running off in every direction and a walk through the fields that feels like a film set. The furthest drive on this list and, for a lot of families, the one that becomes the tradition.
How do you make the morning easy with little ones?
A few things that have saved us:
- Go early. The fields thin out and the queues for baling grow all afternoon.
- Call or check the website first. Hours and opening weekends shift every year, and some farms close once the good trees are gone.
- Bring more layers than you think. Open fields in December are a different temperature from your driveway.
- Decide the size argument in the car. Measure your ceiling at home. Every tree looks smaller outdoors than it does in your living room, which is how people end up sawing a foot off in the garage.
- Take cash. Several of these farms prefer it, and a card reader in an open field is nobody’s friend.
- Feed everyone first. The whole outing is roughly an hour longer than you plan for.
Where do family photographs fit into all this?
Honestly, not at the tree farm.
I photograph families from my studio in McMurray and at a field location in Peters Township, not at these farms. A tree farm on a Saturday in December is cold, crowded and full of other people’s cars, which is a hard place to make the kind of photograph you would put on a wall.
What I would do instead is take your phone out while you are there, and take the messy ones. The negotiating, the hot chocolate, your partner carrying the tree badly. Those photographs are not competing with anything. They are the record of a specific December, and they are worth having.
And if what you actually want is one proper photograph of all of you together, the one nobody can take because somebody always has to hold the camera, that is a separate thing, and it belongs somewhere warm and unhurried. Here is how family sessions work at my studio.
Once the tree is up
The photographs from this season are going to sit on a phone unless somebody does something with them. A print on the wall, a card that goes out to the people you love, an album your children will pull off a shelf in fifteen years. Any of those outlast the needles on the floor.
If you are thinking about your walls, I wrote a whole guide to designing a family photo gallery wall that holds together. And if you are after something simpler for this December, there are easier ways to put your portraits out as part of your decorating.
Still planning the rest of the season? The Christmas lights worth driving to are a good next stop.
Frequently asked questions about Pittsburgh Christmas tree farms
Where is the closest Christmas tree farm to McMurray, PA?
Simmons Farm is in McMurray itself, and Trax Farms in Finleyville is a short drive. Both are choose your own, and Trax offers cut your own from late November.
When do Christmas tree farms near Pittsburgh open?
Most open the weekend after Thanksgiving, and several open on Black Friday. A few stay open until just before Christmas, but the best trees go early. Check the individual farm’s site, because opening weekends move year to year.
Which Pittsburgh Christmas tree farms have wagon or hayrides?
Candle Tree Farm in Washington runs wagon rides out to the fields, and Hozak Farms in Clinton has a hayride out to the trees.
Do I need to bring my own saw?
Usually not. Most cut your own farms near Pittsburgh provide saws, and several will shake, bale and load the tree for you afterwards. Candle Tree Farm lets you bring your own if you prefer, and at Lone Oak Farm someone will do the cutting for you if you would rather not.
Can we take a stroller or a wagon into the fields?
It depends on the ground, and December in Western Pennsylvania is rarely dry. A wagon generally does better than a stroller in a tree field. Several of these farms run a hayride or a wagon out to the trees, which solves the problem entirely.
Is a tree farm a good place for family photographs?
For phone photographs of your own family, absolutely. The light is lovely and the setting does half the work. For a portrait session, less so. December weekends at these farms are crowded and cold, and a studio or a quiet field gives you more to work with.
What should we wear?
Warm layers in colours that sit well together, and nothing with a large logo. The same thinking applies to autumn and winter sessions generally, and I wrote out the whole formula here.
Make a Saturday of it
Pick the farm by drive time, go early, take cash, and let the morning be as unglamorous as it wants to be. The tree is the excuse. The morning is the point.
If this December is the year you would like one proper photograph of your family, all of you, nobody behind the camera, I would love to talk it through with you. Sessions are reserved from my McMurray studio, and we sort out the wardrobe, the hair and makeup, and all the planning before you ever arrive. You just show up.
Brooke is the owner and lead photographer at Petite Magnolia Photography, just outside of Pittsburgh in McMurray, PA. A former pediatric ICU nurse and nurse anesthetist, she brings a level of calm, safety awareness, and genuine care to every session that goes well beyond photography. She specializes in maternity, newborn, baby, and family photography with a focus on documenting the quiet connections, the genuine emotions, and those little moments that make each season of family life worth remembering. Her approach is simple: create timeless images that feel like you. She serves families throughout Pittsburgh and the surrounding communities — including the South Hills, Mt. Lebanon, Upper St. Clair, Sewickley, Peters Township, and Morgantown, WV. She believes photographs should document the love and connection your family shares right now, and that those images deserve to live somewhere more meaningful than a phone camera roll. That’s why she guides her clients through creating heirloom albums, fine art prints, and keepsake pieces they’ll return to for generations.
