shelters in Boston. Tree selection The Christmas Tree Extension Specialist whose responsibility it is to select a tree is "always looking" for trees, and keeps a list of trees for years. The scouting for the current year's tree begins in June and July. Most donors are "honored to give up their trees... [and] most will gladly watch their towering trees fall" since everyone knows the reason it is being sent to Boston. Owners often would not normally "have dreamed of cutting down the big spruce Grandpa planted" but will "gladly part with it" when told it is going to Boston. They "consider it a great honor" and say, 'Oh, my God, how can I refuse?"' It is sometimes donated in memory of a family member who died in the explosion. The process can be political as families vie to have their tree chosen. Specifications Knowing its symbolic importance to both jurisdictions, the Nova Scotia Department of Natural Resources has specific guidelines for selecting the tree. It must be an attractive balsam fir, white spruce or red spruce, 12 to 16 meters (40 to 50 feet) tall, healthy with good color, medium to heavy density, uniform and symmetrical and easy to access. The trees do not usually come from tree farms, but from open land where they can grow tall and full. Christmas Tree Specialist The Nova Scotia Department of Natural Resources Christmas Tree Specialist has the responsibility for selecting the tree each year. For the specialist the "tree can be elusive, the demands excessive, and the job requires remembering the locations of the best specimens in the province and persuading the people who own them to give them up for a pittance." The first Specialist was Tom Ernst, and he was followed in the 1990s by Peter Romkey. , the Christmas Tree Extension Specialist responsible for selecting the Boston tree is Ross H. Pentz, a position he has held since 2001. Tree cutting and ceremony Before the tree is cut, each branch is individually tied to the trunk. It takes two men a day and a half to prepare the tree to be cut down. A crane holds the tree at the top while it is cut at the base by a chainsaw. The tree cutting ceremony has been described as "quite the local spectacle for Nova Scotians," and features representatives from the province, the United States Consulate in Halifax,