A Christmas tree covered with glittering bumble bees and beeswax candles. Trees evoking custom Dolce & Gabanna and Valentino dresses. Or, how about one with red tartan ornaments in honor of Scottish heritage?

All those trees and more are on display in the 20th annual Trees of Historic Bethlehem, the beloved tradition of Historic Bethlehem Museums & Sites.

Spread across three locations — the Moravian Museum of Bethlehem in the 1741 Gemeinhaus, the Kemerer Museum of Decorative Arts and the Single Sisters’ House — this year’s tour features 21 trees that all were crowd favorites from the past 20 years of the exhibit.

Each year, an army of volunteers from the Bethlehem Garden Club and the community haul out years of ornaments that go along with that year’s theme.

“We have an attic at the Kemmerer Museum that is just chock full of ornaments and decorations for trees,” said Sharon Donchez,  who co-chairs the Bethlehem Garden Club’s Tree Decorating Committee along with Sandy Gass. “Everyone will go up to the attic and hopefully find what they’re looking for for their tree.”

The festival was created 20 years ago by volunteer Jan Bealer, and a fund in her memory continues to financially support the effort along with local businesses and other organizations.

Approaching the 20th anniversary, organizers decided that this year’s theme would be a nod to crowd favorites of the past. (Attendees are encouraged to vote for their favorite trees each year.)

Those include the Waterworks Tree, featuring water-themed décor and tin Waterworks ornaments as a nod to the 1762 Waterworks; Winter Wonderland, a white tree with white lights and decorations; Dolce & Gabanna, which is half tree and half mannequin; and the Bee Tree, featuring Moravian beeswax candles, locally made Moravian Stars, bee-related decorations, and information regarding pollinators and bee baths.

The effort would not be possible without volunteers like Donchez, who on Saturday was recognized as Historic Bethlehem Museums & Sites’ Volunteer of the Year.

“She’s been the inspiration for many, many years behind Trees of Historic Bethlehem,” said HBMS President LoriAnn Wukitsch. “She deserves every ounce of recognition we’re going to shower on her.”

Also honored for their support were Historic Hotel Bethlehem, photographer Lydia Panas and blacksmith Luke Dellmyer.

The tree festival is one of the largest fundraiser for HBMS, drawing in more than 5,000 people annually. This year, for the first time ever, Historic Bethlehem Museums & Sites is running a simultaneous exhibit: Baked into Bethlehem, honoring Bethlehem’s delicious past.

“It’s really about how baking has been woven into the city’s history and identity,” Wukitsch said. “From the early Moravian beehive ovens to what was an iconic confectionery shop, Groman’s Bakery, which anybody that was anybody had a wedding cake, birthday cake, anniversary cake from Groman’s. … We’re really taking two themes, the trees and the baking, and tying them together.”

Other trees on display include the Grinch Who Stole Christmas, Circus, Antarctica (Penguins) and Baked Goods trees, and trees featuring antique ornaments, Victorian-era decorations and scherenschnitte, the German art of papercutting.

While the theme is trees of the past, decorators were encouraged to incorporate new elements and their own artistic flair.

When asked to pick her favorite tree, Donchez was mum.

“It’s hard to pick,” she said. “I wouldn’t want to pick a favorite tree.”

If you go

Trees of Historic Bethlehem is open through Sunday, Jan. 11. Tickets for the exhibit are on sale now at historicbethlehem.org/Christmas and include admission to the Kemerer Museum of Decorate Arts, Moravian Museum of Bethlehem and Single Sisters’ House, as well as the new Baked into Bethlehem exhibition. Tours are self-guided (it’ll take at least an hour to view all the trees), and attendees receive a pamphlet providing an overview of each tree. Admission is $25 for adults, $23 for teachers and active military/veterans, and $14 for children ages 4 and older. Children ages 3 and under are free.