MENDON (AP) — State officials are urging residents to keep it local when they buy their Christmas tree this season.

WBZ NewsRadio 1030′s Kim Tunnicliffe reports

Agriculture commissioner Gregory Watson says buying a Massachusetts grown tree from a local farm is good for the local economy. Watson attended an annual Christmas Tree cutting ceremony on Friday at the Vandervalk Farm in Mendon.

Christmas trees are considered a crop and nearly 98 percent of all trees are grown on farms.

Recent figures from the U.S. Department of Agriculture show there are 284 farms in Massachusetts that produce Christmas trees.

Online: Massachusetts Christmas Tree Association

Copyright 2012 The Associated Press.