[sheeeep86]

We got our 1,7m large Christmas tree in Germany for 13 Euros, I simply don't understand how it could have been worth to let it grow for many years at this price.

[tpmx]

Perhaps grown in e.g. Poland where land and manpower is lower priced, compared to Germany?

Ikea Sweden used to sell similar-priced christmas trees "farmed" in Denmark, but they stopped doing that after accusations that they were undermining local suppliers of non-herbicide-grown christmas trees. (In Sweden christmas trees tend to be expensive in cities and cheap/free in the countryside.)

[Scoundreller]

Ikea has some loss leaders.

Christmas probably isn’t busy for them since there’s not a lot of real estate turnover in December.

I once ran the numbers for their tealights and I couldn’t even buy bulk wax that cheaply.

[Aeolun]

To be fair, agricultural land is relatively cheap. And you basically just leave the tree there for 10 years, so maybe it works out?

[throwaway201103]

TFA mentions regular trimming/shaping, and fertilizing.

[jojobas]

It's not really labour intensive, you have to offset very little labour and rent of your 10 sqm of land (not suitable for any more profitable crop).

Some subsidies can play a role too.

[Scoundreller]

Yeah, many “Christmas tree” species can grow in highly acidic soil that’s otherwise only good for blueberries, which are tasty, but usually not much else.

At the end of the Christmas season, you can still compost the tree or turn it into wood chips.