What's it like to work as a Christmas tree farmer?

Despite the hard work in the Christmas run-up, Downing Street's tree supplier Hans Alexandersen still enjoys the big day

Christmas tree farmer Hans Alexandersen

When Hans Alexandersen tells people what his day job is, he is invariably asked what he does for the rest of the year. In reality, the Christmas tree farmer works all year round to maintain his 750,000-strong fir tree plantations. His prize-winning tree has been selected to stand in Downing Street for the second year running.

The Christmas rush begins as early as August when Alexandersen receives his first orders. But some people leave it until the afternoon of 24 December to buy their trees from his family-run shop, Santa Fir, in Guildford, Surrey.

Born in Denmark, Alexandersen is not fazed by the obsessive runup to Christmas in this country. "It's perfectly fine to enjoy Christmas for that amount of time," he says. "In the end, a tree costs a lot of money and the more pleasure you get out of it, I think the better it is."

His top tips to avoid needle drop are to buy from a local grower and water the tree, if you can. "The biggest problems are people putting their trees in a stand that takes no water, and putting them in front of the central heating," he says. "Then they go crispy straight away."

Despite being reminded of Christmas all year long, the festive season is still a special time for Alexandersen, his wife Julie - who works in the family business - and their children. "I enjoy Christmas so much," he says. "I have my family around me and we celebrate it just like everybody else. We go through a period of very hard work sending trees out. When the 24th comes, boom - we relax!" His favourite part of the job is getting to start the Christmas period off for families. "It's a pleasure to see people smiling, happy with their tree."

Driving his truck to Downing Street has been another perk of the job, although he is yet to meet David Cameron. "Hopefully this year, touch wood, we will see him," he says.