For America’s Christmas trees, it seems no place is safe. Spruces, firs and even artificial evergreens have vanished in recent weeks, leaving behind a trail of conifer crime scenes.

Already hit: a charity sale in Illinois, a tree farm in Massachusetts and a Whataburger restaurant in Texas.

Purveyors of holiday greenery are not taking the thefts quietly.

In upstate New York, the owner of a farm installed security cameras after three colorful trees were stolen. In Philadelphia, the police released footage of a man grabbing a decorated tree, in hopes of catching him. And at the University of Minnesota, landscaping crews bought bottles of skunk essence to spray on their live spruces — ones that were never meant for living rooms.

“If people know there’s the potential that they might get a stinky tree, they’re probably less likely to cut one down,” explained Tom Ritzer, the university’s assistant director of landcare. (The University of Idaho uses a slightly different theft-deterring potion: a blend of fox urine and skunk scent. It even published a recipe.)