Mystic -- “I married my Hallmark movie.”

That’s the way Pantea Umrysz explains a life that somehow took her from her Iranian roots halfway around the world as a young girl to her new home in sunny California, to a chance meeting with her future husband and a future date as one of the mainstays of the Yetter Road Christmas Tree Farm in the middle of a Mystic neighborhood.

Umrysz remembers having a WalMart Christmas tree as a child, but times were tough for her and her single mom in the early years, and of course there were no seasons to speak of in California. So when she met Tom Umrysz, who made it very clear that he planned to be a Christmas tree farmer in Mystic no matter what, Pantea was only too happy to leave San Diego to enjoy a life that she’d previously experienced only in movies.

“When I met my husband, he was like, ‘Listen, I was born and raised here on a tree farm and I'm never going to leave,’” Pantea laughed after taking care of a swarm of customers Monday. ”He was very transparent. My husband comes from three generations of deep farming roots.“

The Yetter Road Christmas Tree Farm has become such a destination this time of year that it was one of the places filmed in the 2021 Lifetime movie “The Holiday Fix-Up,” which earned Tom Umrysz a few seconds of fame as he was shown baling a tree in one brief clip.

Tom Umrysz said he learned farming and his work ethic from his grandfather John, the hardest-working man he knew, a guy who was still doing field work into his 90s.

“He grew up as a dairy farmer, and the day after the Pearl Harbor strike he signed up for the Navy and he was actually a torpedo man on the USS Rodman (a mine-sweeping and anti-submarine boat),” Tom said.

After the war, Tom’s grandfather returned home and started working in the 14 acres of fields that his family owned on Yetter Road, cleaning up the overgrown orchards and planting trees, eventually marrying Irene Whittle Umrysz, who also came from a famed local farming family. Finally, a half century ago in 1974, the Umryszes opened their Christmas tree farm for the very first time, and a seasonal tradition was born.

This time of year, the tree farm is brimming with activity, both in the fields and at the gift shop that is open seasonally in a converted garage in back of the Umrysz home. The shop is named for Dina Umrysz, Tom’s late mother, who inspired the indoor side of the tree farm business, while husband Leon, who still owns and works the farm, took care of the fields.

“Everything is local and handmade,” said Pantea, who now runs the shop while her husband takes care of the outside work.

The Umryszes do a brisk business in handmade wreaths and ropings inside the shop, but there are also many local and affordable gifts, such as candles, mugs, tumblers, t-shirts, earrings, crocheted Christmas trees, decorated oyster shells, ornaments and sippy cups.

“We kind of have a Clyde’s (cider mill) vibe where we're a seasonal farm in the middle of a residential neighborhood,” Pantea said, pointing to a new eight-space parking area in front of their house which allows customers a more convenient way to access the shop than in the past.

The Umryszes had a soft opening of the business on the Monday before Thanksgiving, but the days after the big holiday is when people tend to descend on the farm in force. The Umryszes said they expect a busier season than ever as several local Christmas tree farms have scaled back in recent years.

“It’s just a dying industry, where these farmers are doing it and your kids don't want to work with their hands and take a business over,” said Tom, who with Pantea has two young children.

And of course, like all farmers, Christmas tree growers must contend with the vicissitude of the New England weather, which earlier this year included intense rains followed more recently by drought conditions. And of course, tree farmers cannot cut too many trees for fear that they won’t have enough to sell the following year.

“We have to keep sustainability in mind,” Tom said. “Our goal is to protect the farm and have trees for years to come.”

But the demand from customers has been so big in the past few seasons at the farm that the Umryszes now sell trees from off site as well as their own.

Most trees up to 7 feet high, which include balsam, Canaan, concolor, Douglas, Fraser, Nordman, corkbark, Turkish and Korean firs as well as white, blue and Meyers spruces and white pine, are priced at $70 this year. The bigger ones are $10 a foot.

“We’re more of a boutique farm operation,” said Tom, comparing his business with a place like Maple Lane Farm in Preston, where the trees are bigger but you have to cut your own. “We try to create more of a personal experience.”

To that end, the Umryszes this year had a sign painter write out silly holiday jokes that are placed next to the pre-cut trees. The signs ask “What kind of photos do elves take? Elfies,” and “What’s a reindeer’s favorite game? Truth or deer.”

Another recent homey touch was the addition of a mural telling the story of the farm and its surrounding landmarks, including a croissant from Sift Bake Shop and a depiction of the Mystic Pizza restaurant, along with a beluga whale, the Fitch High School logo and an ice cream cone in a nod to Mystic Drawbridge Ice Cream. The mural was designed by local artist Katie Fogg and painted by her and Krista Stanowicz, who is also known as Krista Stan.

“I think what we have here is really, really special,” Pantea said. “Every year, it's like how can we continue to enhance the user experience?”

This year, the Umryszes plan to have Bridge Market come to sell their wood-fired pizzas and bagels, and Saxophone Santa will make an appearance during the next two weekends (check https://www.facebook.com/YetterRoadTreeFarm/ for specifics).

The Umryszes, who have a painting business during the rest of the year, also annually support the Adopt-a-Family program through the Groton Department of Human Services. This year, they hope to provide funds for 100 families, thanks to help from their customers who contribute.

The farm and shop are open Monday through Friday from noon to 5 p.m. as well as 9-5 Saturday and Sunday through Dec. 23.

The challenge of their operation, Pantea said, is “how do you continue to grow but honor the past; how do you grow but still maintain this legacy? .... We've certainly had our fair share of challenges ... but you can only control the controllables and our goals to continue to grow this business and evolve it....

“Beauty is in the struggle,” she added. “This is awesome to be able to have this here ... and make it work.”

l.howard@theday.com