Green Your Good Deed: Recycle Christmas Trees

The tradition of giving is a fundamental part of the holiday season, even in cash-strapped times. This week we'll offer ways to get more green mileage from your generosity.

Tip #2: Give Your Tree Back to the Earth

If you opt for a real Christmas tree (Sierra's Mr. Green says that real trees are greener than fakes), help the environment by recycling the brown-needled conifer after the holiday. Trees can be used to restore sand dunes, wetlands, and fish habitat. Turn your tree into wood chips or compost if you're landlocked. Earth 911 will help you find a recycling program in your area.

Share your tips: How do you avoid sending the Christmas tree to the landfill?

Comments

[Penny]

I don't get a tree that has been cut down. I get a tree that is alive. We leave it outside until Christmas Eve, bring it in so that we can put our gifts underneath, and the following day we put it back outside. In the spring, we plant it. We have lived in a variety of places but have planted over 10 trees. I spray an organic freshener (like Method) that always has seasonal aromas so that it smells like Christmas in my house. With the decorations and lights and everything else we put up no one has ever said anything negative about our not having a tree.

[Leslye Evans-Lane]

"Plant" the tree in a part of the yard that can be used to feed the birds. Hang feeders, drill holes and fill with suet, or smear the trunk with peanut butter. The needles will fall off but you are still creating a bird sanctuary that feels more natural than a pole.

[Lehua]

I never get a cut tree, either. There are 5 different varieties of firs growing in my back yard. Any pine cones and dead branches that fall off are being saved for my drum circle bonfire on Winter Solstice eve this coming Saturday night.

[Marliss]

First of all, I am in favor of saving trees and reducing waste. No one should feel required to have a tree. That said, I do buy a cut tree every year from a family business in town that has a ranch in New Mexico. I get a lovely, unsheared Christmas tree, and this small business gets encouragement to keep growing trees on their property. After the holiday, the tree goes into water in the backyard to provide shelter for birds, and it lasts a long time.

At some point, I hope this blog or Sierra will do a feature on sustainable forest and harvesting. I have noted that when companies consider that nonprofitable, they sell the land--and in go the subdivisions, which are much less green than managed forest.

[Stacy]

Our Homeowner's Association's (HOA) maintenance crew collects them and takes them to be ground into green mulch product.

Also, local Boy Scout Troops use it as a fundraiser to collect them door-to-door and grind them into mulch.

Both great options requiring only that you leave your tree on the curb by a certain date and time!

[ellen h]

Real Christmas trees, that have not been spray painted, etc, are good for erosion control on stream beds.
So, after the holidays when people set out their trees for pickup, go ahead and inspect what they have and take the good stuff to use for this purpose. It's admittedly a good bit of work but if the trees are laid down on the bare bank and then staked in (nothing elaborate), it works. And, it's certainly cheaper than rip rap, etc.

[Juliet]

I am somewhat ashamed to say that I have a fake Christmas tree, I have had it for at least 10 years. I now dislike it, but can't bring myself to throw such a large piece of plastic into the trash so I suppose I am stuck with it until it falls apart. Any suggestions?

[carol]

I also have a fake tree, which I bought over 10 years ago because my son's allergies were activated by real trees. I don't feel the least bit guilty, because I will use that thing until it's lost every needle. After that I may use it as a support for my climbing vines (which I also did with real trees when I had them).

[Jennifer Taylor]

I have an idea. Basically, the people who sell cut trees should instead RENT the trees, potted with organic compost in pots with room for growing, and get a deposit on the tree and return the deposit once the tree is returned in good condition. The deposit could be the same amount as a cut tree, so if people dont want to return it or if they damage it, they dont pay much more than they would having bought a cut tree. Also, if they return the tree they get back the deposit, which is a good incentive to do return them. The grower also wins because he doesn't need to grow a whole big tree again each time; in fact, the trees just get bigger and more valuable with each year. Also this way, carbon is captured at a more efficient rate (medium tree vs. baby tree)and massive amounts of carbon wouldn't be released each year by the decomposition of dead trees, so this would reduce global warming to some extent as well. If you think about how much time it really takes a pine tree to reach a nice size, you would think that the growers would value the time invested a bit more than they do.

Anyone out to try it?
; )

[The Green Life]

Jennifer,

There's a company in Oregon who does rent live Christmas trees:
http://www.livingchristmastrees.org/treedelivery.html.

Anyone know of other tree rental companies?

[Austin Winther]

We have live trees in our living room. We put our lights on one of them. Nothing to dispose of at all. We use very small bulbs

[Fred Duggan]

I bring mine to the park by my house where they mulch them for future use.