COLUMBIA, SC (WOLO) — The official Christmas tree of South Carolina arrived at the Statehouse Tuesday morning, for many, marking the beginning of the holiday season. According to members of the Columbia Garden Club, the 35-foot tall Norway Spruce made its journey from Henderson Tree Farms in Morganton, North Carolina — an area heavily impacted by Hurricane Helene. “The garden club was really helpful in going out to that tree farm and picking it out, cause there are several of them up there that they grow for 2 decades or more, so these trees take a long time to grow,” says Connor Maser with Timbertech, an upstate tree management company. And while warmer weather welcomed its arrival here in Columbia, Charlene Slaughter with Experience Columbia SC says the tradition of the tree marks the beginning of the holiday season. “I just feel like it’s not Christmas time until the Carolighting, you know until we light up that tree, and get everything going, it really just signals the Christmas season here. It puts us in the mood, it brings our communities together, here to listen to the Christmas music and to see the entertainment, so it’s really important to keep doing this year after year. Experience Columbia, you know we’ve sponsored it 11 years in a row, and we just love that this is a part of our yearly tradition here in Columbia and here in the state of SC,” says Slaughter. This year, the tree will have new decorations — with over 13,000 new LED lights and 900 new silver and gold ornaments. But those lights won’t turn on until the 58th Annual Governor’s Carolighting on November 24th. “I came and watched the Carolighting last year, not as Miss SC but I looked and admired it, and I knew this time next year I wanted to be the woman emceeing it. So being in Columbia, and passing the Statehouse everyday is such a special experience we get everyday in our city, so now adding the Christmas tree to that beauty is going to be something very special,” says the event’s host, Miss South Carolina Davis Wash. Festivities for the Carolighting will begin at 4:30 the afternoon of the 24th, with the tree light ceremony beginning at 6 p.m. Categories: Local News, News Tags: Charlene Slaughter, Christmas Tree, Connor Maser, Davis Wash, Experience Columbia SC, Henderson Tree Farms, Timbertech