LEIGH TREES

Leigh Trees is a Christmas tree farm in Westcliff-on-Sea, open from mid-November until a few days before Christmas. You choose a real tree from the cut and pot-grown trees on site at the farm, where staff net the tree and carry it to your car. Orders can also be placed online for free delivery to Southend-on-Sea and surrounding areas including Leigh-on-Sea, Rayleigh, Canvey Island, Benfleet and Basildon.

Cut trees are Nordmann fir, Fraser fir, Norway spruce and woodblock, and the base is freshly cut before you take the tree away. Pot-grown trees come in Norway spruce, blue spruce, Fraser fir and Nordman fir. A rental scheme is also available: you pay a £15 refundable deposit, keep the potted tree watered through Christmas, and the farm collects it after the holiday, no later than 10 January.

The farm is open seven days a week during the season: 8am to 7pm Monday to Wednesday, 8am to 8pm Thursday to Saturday, and 8am to 5pm on Sundays. Tree stands and wreaths are sold on site. Cut trees need a water-holding stand and daily watering. If a tree drops needles or fades before Christmas Day, the farm will replace it free of charge. After Christmas, a collection and recycling service is available for £15.

The entrance and car park are wheelchair accessible, and dogs are welcome on leads.

What visitors say

There is a good choice of Christmas tree sizes and types, and the trees are nice and look perfect. Delivery works well, and some rent a tree for the season knowing it will be collected after Christmas to replant and reuse, while others keep theirs to plant in the garden after Christmas. Service is good, and some customers have bought trees here more than once.