The 75-year-old spruce came from Wallkill, 60 miles (96 kilometers) north of New York. It was donated by Lissette Gutierrez and her wife, Shirley Figueroa, from their home property. They nicknamed the tree "Shelby."

"Now it's not my tree, it's the world's tree; I'm so happy to be able to share her with everyone," Figueroa said at Rockefeller Center on Saturday. "Millions of people will come to visit Shelby."

Figueroa, 49, explained that she refers to the tree as "she" because "I felt she has a female spirit."

Figueroa said that when she and Gutierrez bought their house, the previous owner said Rockefeller Center's gardener had his eye on the tree. Gutierrez, 47, said she initially was reluctant to give up the spruce, but Figueroa convinced her.

Erik Pauze, the center's head gardener, also attended the ceremony. He cared for the tree over the summer, watering and feeding it compost tea as the couple watched outside their home.