A 40-plus-year family operation with a warming station and photo sleigh, but the last confirmed season ran barely three weeks -- go early, and call to confirm 2026 dates haven't shifted.
Smiling John’s has been run by John and Rosie Hagedorn for more than 40 years, and it’s the kind of farm that’s become a known quantity locally rather than a discovery – it turned up in a 2025 WSAW-TV segment specifically about heavy post-Thanksgiving traffic at Wisconsin tree farms. That’s a decent proxy for popularity even without hard visitor numbers: if a local TV crew picked it to illustrate a story about crowded farms, expect company on opening weekend.
The most recent confirmed schedule ran Nov. 21 through Dec. 14, 2025 – Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. That’s a noticeably shorter window than many Wisconsin farms, some of which stay open into Christmas week. Those dates are explicitly tagged to the 2025 season in the sources we checked, and we’re not assuming they’ll land on the same calendar days in 2026. If you’re the type to leave tree shopping until the second or third week of December, this is one farm where that habit could mean showing up after closing. Call ahead if you’re planning anything past early December.
Five tree species are on offer: Balsam Fir, Fraser Fir, Canaan Fir, Scotch Pine, and White Pine, split between cut-your-own and pre-cut trees for anyone who doesn’t want to do the cutting themselves. The farm sets up a sleigh for family photos – a nice, low-effort touch that a lot of smaller operations skip – and runs a warming station serving hot cocoa and cookies, which matters more here than at some farms given how cold a Merrill-area November or December morning can get.
No price was published anywhere in the sources we checked for this listing – not a per-tree figure, not a per-foot rate. We’re not going to invent one, and you shouldn’t plan your budget around a guess either. The practical move is to call ahead (the farm doesn’t have a dedicated website, only an email address and tourism/news listings, so a phone call or a message is your best bet for current information) and ask directly what a tree costs this season, along with whether they take cards or expect cash.
Saw availability isn’t confirmed either way in the record, so ask when you call whether you need to bring your own or one is provided. Parking surface, accessibility, and payment method are all unconfirmed. The coordinates on file are a rough city-center estimate for Merrill rather than the farm’s actual rural route address, so don’t rely on a map pin – use the street address (W3750 Center Rd) directly in your GPS.
If a long-running, locally beloved family farm with a classic sleigh-photo-and-cocoa setup appeals to you, this is a reasonable pick, especially if you go early in the season rather than gambling on a longer window than the farm has historically kept. If firm pricing or a longer season matters more to your planning, weigh that against the short confirmed history here before committing to the drive.
Early in the season if the farm follows its last confirmed pattern (Nov. 21-Dec. 14, 2025) -- that window is short, so don't wait until mid-December to visit.
1-1.5 hours for cutting, plus extra time at the warming station for cocoa and cookies
A 2025 WSAW-TV segment specifically covered busy post-Thanksgiving traffic at area tree farms, and this one is well known locally, so expect the first weekend after Thanksgiving to be the busiest of its short season.
Not specified in the record. Expect an open field or gravel lot typical of family-run cut-your-own farms in this region.
No accessibility details were published. As a cut-your-own operation, expect a field walk over uneven, unpaved ground.
Skip this one if you're planning a visit after mid-December, since the last confirmed season closed Dec. 14, or if you need a farm open more than three days a week.
No. The last confirmed schedule was Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays only, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Run by John and Rosie Hagedorn, the farm has been operating for more than 40 years and is well known locally.
The last confirmed season ran Nov. 21 through Dec. 14, 2025 -- about three weeks, shorter than many area farms. This is last known information and not yet confirmed for 2026.
No pricing has been published for this farm in any source checked. Call ahead to ask.
November 21 – December 14, 2026. Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays. Hours: 8:00 AM-4:00 PM.
Pricing was not published when we last checked.
Yes. It's cut-your-own.
W3750 Center Rd, Merrill, WI 54452, in Lincoln County. It is one of 5 farms we track in Wisconsin Northwoods.
We track 5 farms in Wisconsin Northwoods, 4 of which let you cut your own tree. The farm has not published a starting price, so it cannot be compared on cost — call before you budget.
Its season runs about 24 days against a regional average of 24, so it is broadly in line with the rest of the region.
What sets it apart locally: it has a hayride or sleigh ride, a cocoa or cider stand, which most Wisconsin Northwoods farms on our list do not.
There is 1 other farm we track in Lincoln County. All Wisconsin Northwoods farms →
Map pin is set to the town centre. Navigate to the street address above, not the pin.
visitwausau.com · gmail.com
Checked August 2026.