More than 300 military families will celebrate the holidays with something special this year: a real Maine Christmas tree.

All delivered. All for free.

“It’s important to show the troops we here appreciate the sacrifice they’re making,” said Calvin Luther, president of the Maine Christmas Tree Association and owner of Penobscot Evergreens Farm in Bucksport. “This is a small gesture Christmas tree growers can make to show them.”

Created by the National Christmas Tree Association and FedEx, the “Trees for Troops” program gathers thousands of trees and distributes them to military bases across the country. Last year, the program’s first, more than a dozen states donated a few thousand trees. Maine balsam fir trees seemed perfect, but the closest FedEx pick up point was in New York. Local growers couldn’t get their trees there.

This year, FedEx agreed to pick up in Newburgh.

With the closer pick up point, 19 Maine growers donated 305 trees. All were recently sent to Fort Drum, an Army installation in New York. Troops and their families will take the trees home.

Luther gave 25 balsam firs, 5 percent of his inventory. His son had served three years with the 10th Mountain Division at Fort Drum.

“I wanted to make a statement,” he said.

Rice Tree Farm, a small, family-owned Durham grower, donated five trees. It was stock that co-owner Dave Rice really couldn’t afford to let go since demand is up this year and his inventory is rapidly getting thin. But he didn’t want to let the troops and their families down.

“Put yourself in their situation,” he said. “This (having a tree) is tradition for a lot of families.”

Mason’s Tree Farm in Wales also gave five trees. Co-owner Deborah Gile knows people who have returned from overseas and she knows people who are set to leave. She wanted to give troops like them a little piece of home.

“There are people losing their lives for our freedom,” she said. “If this is what would give them joy, we do it.”

Growers from 27 states donated 11,000 trees this year. FedEx trucked them to 25 military bases. One shipment was also sent overseas.