The tree that could be king - Window on the West - Illustration

Pruning shears in hand, Oregon tree grower (and state senator) Bob Kintigh tends his 200 acres of evergreen beauty. Last year, one of his trees--a 7-foot Douglas fir that Kintigh hand-pollinated from two genetically superior parents--was awarded the National Christmas Tree Association Co-grand Championship. The prize earned Kintigh the privilege of presenting a second specimen, an 18 1/2-foot grand fir, to the White House for display in the Blue Room. Winning the prize, says Kintigh, "had been my goal for some years. The competition is really keen."

Oregon harvests more Christmas trees than any other state in the nation: 7.9 million last year. Kintigh, who has been raising them since 1955, says that the Douglas fir remains most popular among his customers, but that the noble is gaining on it. And what tree will grace the Kintigh hearth this Christmas? "My wife and I both like a fir with a definite layering to it, like the Shasta. That's what we'll probably have."