Tree nut !

RICHBURG, S.C. -- Melody Howell doesn't just have a Christmas tree; she has a whole Christmas forest in her Richburg-area home.

This year, she has 52 decorated trees -- one in every room of her house, including one in the laundry room and another in a bathtub.

Most folks think about their holiday decorations after Thanksgiving, but Howell never stops. She told the Rock Hill Herald she starts decking her halls Oct. 1 to be ready by mid-December.

All of the trees have themed decorations, and by Christmas, all will have names.

Fruitful Opulence. Victorian Romance. Limealicious. Arctic Frost. A black-and-white tree is Dancing in the Dark. A hot pink, diva-themed tree that still awaits a name is decked in shoes, sunglasses and other girlish treats.

During December, Howell and her husband, Gary, sometimes give group tours of their homegrown holiday attraction to seniors and members of their church, Ebenezer Presbyterian in Rock Hill.

Husband Gary Howell said his wife is a Christmas nut, but he added that their house looks beautiful when she's all done.

Howell enjoys having people over during the holidays so they can check out her trees. She plans an open house next week for church members and friends.

The trees don't come down until after Jan. 6. And Howell said she takes a month or more to put them all away, stashed in a Christmas storage room, two attics and her garage. "It comes down a whole lot faster than it goes up," she said.

Then, she said, Christmas is over. "And I'll start planning for next year."