During the mid-century, Japan became the leading producer of bottle brush Christmas trees. These trees were often imported to the United States and marketed by companies such as Howard-Holt and  NAPCO. They were decorated with millinery fruits, pine cones, glitter and mercury glass beads. They were carried by department stores and dime stores such as Woolworth’s and Leewards and became a popular and affordable Christmas decoration.  Decorating bottle brush trees with spun cotton fruit is most likely inspired by the long tradition in Europe, particularly in Germany, of decorating evergreen trees with real fruit that was often dipped in paraffin wax to help preserve them over the holiday season.