State officials are asking New Yorkers to think local when choosing a Christmas tree this holiday season.

There are 875 farms upstate that sell more than 300,000 Christmas trees per year.

This season, some farmers nationwide say there may be a tree shortage and that they don’t have as many trees as they usually do this time of year.

Experts say a tight economy and less demand for real trees have hurt the industry and that buyers should expect higher prices for trees this year.

Wholesale prices of trees from the northwest have gone up nearly 50 percent this year due to the shortages.