Buying Live Christmas Trees

Thanksgiving is over and now the next focus for many is Christmas. If you are buying a Christmas tree, the question is often, “should it be a live tree or a plastic Christmas tree?”  Of course, you know which TheGardenLady is going to recommend. This column will be about why to buy live trees for the holiday. 

Did you know that you are helping to support the American economy by buying live Christmas trees?  Between 100,000 and 150,000 people work in the Christmas tree business. Just as there is a push to buy produce locally, when you buy a fresh, live Christmas tree you are basically buying locally since Christmas trees are grown in all 50 states, including Alaska and Hawaii.  Christmas tree growers have about 1 million acres just for growing Christmas trees. And some of these farms allow you to go and have the family fun of choosing and then chopping down your own tree.

It takes approximately 7 years to grow a tree 6 ft and while these tree are growing, each acre provides the daily oxygen requirements of 18 people. Growers  try to use a minimum amount of pesticides and the government oversees the use of pesticides by farmers, so you should not worry about pesticides on the tree.  But if you do worry, when you buy your tree at a local farm, speak to the owner about pesticide use on his trees.

When the tree is chopped down, two to three seedlings are planted to replace it.  After Christmas is over the tree is biodegradable. You can use it for mulch in your garden or do your own composting with it. But if you throw it out, your community will recycle it.

Because less pesticides are used on farmed trees, you might be bringing in some insects that make their homes in the trees. So when buying a live Christmas tree, inspect it carefully. I would buy one in the daytime if at all possible. If you must buy it at night, inspect the tree carefully before bringing it  into your house.  Look on the undersides of the branches for small insects and look at the trunk- small holes with sawdust trails may signify that bark beetles have made a home in the trunk. Don’t buy a tree that seems to have a lot of insects on it.  Shake the tree vigorously to dislodge larger insects and prune out any branches that you think have insects that can’t be removed otherwise.   Remove any bird nests that are in the tree because the nests might contain mites or bird lice in them. Check branches for insect eggs and remove them so the eggs don’t “think” it is spring when you bring the trees indoors and decide it is time to hatch.

Do not spray any pesticides on the trees. Pesticides are toxic.  If there are a few insects remaining in the tree they will probably die as the tree dries out. It is much safer to vacuum up any insects that you find on the floor. People have been bringing in live Christmas trees for years and no one has really been bothered by the insects.

One of the best sites for choosing a tree and finding a farm where you can buy Christmas trees in your area is this.

Some popular trees that are used as Christmas trees are:

The Scotch pine – Pinus Sylvestris is known for its excellent needle retention and the fact that the tree resists drying out. If it does become dry, the Scotch pine does not drop its needles. When kept in a water filled container it will remain fresh for the normal 3 to 4 week Christmas season.

The Balsam fir – Abies Balsamea is known for its attractive form with dark-green, long-lasting needle – up 4 tp 5 weeks. It retains its great fragrance indoors.

The Douglas Fir – Psuedotsugu menziesii is not a true fir. It is the most popular Christmas tree species used in the Pacific Northwest. And in the Midwest  there is a variety of Douglas fir (P. menziesii var. glauca) that has been extensively grown for Christmas trees and is becoming very popular.

As a Christmas tree, White Spruce Picea glauca has excellent foliage color, short stiff needles and a good natural shape. Needle retention is better than some of other spruce species. But when the needles are crushed, they give off an unpleasant smell.

Blue spruce – Picea pungens is becoming very popular as a Christmas tree because of its excellent shape and gorgeous blue foliage. Their needle retention is among the best for the spruces but it doesn’t hold up as long as some other varieties of evergreen trees. If you must have the Blue spruce bring this tree indoors and decorate it closer to Christmas time.

Noble Fir – Abies procera is an excellent Christmas tree because of its beauty, stiff branches and long keepability. The species is growing in popularity (between 25% and 30% of the fresh tree market in the Pacific Northwest). It is also widely used in the greenery business to make wreaths, door swags, garlands and other Christmas products.

Fraser Fir – Abies fraseri is one of the most popular Christmas tree species because of its lovely form,  great needle retention both with and without water, dark blue-green color, pleasant scent and excellent shipping characteristics if you are ordering a tree.

Eastern White pine –  Pinus strobus has excellent needle retention but no fragrance which is good for people who have allergies.

Table 1. Characteristics of common Christmas tree species under room conditions. (1 = most desirable; 4 = least desirable)
	Fraser Fir	White Pine	Scotch Pine	Norway Spruce
Needle retention without water	1	1	1	4
Needle retention with water	1	1	1	3
Firmness of branches	2	3	1	2
Fragrance	1	2	2	2
Resistance to ignition	2	3	3	2
Adapted from: Winch, F. E., and G. R. Cunningham. 1969. Selection, identification, and care of Christmas trees and greens. Cornell Univ. Cooperative Extension Service Bulletin 983.

Table 1. Characteristics of common Christmas tree species under room conditions. (1 = most desirable; 4 = least desirable)
	Fraser Fir	White Pine	Scotch Pine	Norway Spruce
Needle retention without water	1	1	1	4
Needle retention with water	1	1	1	3
Firmness of branches	2	3	1	2
Fragrance	1	2	2	2
Resistance to ignition	2	3	3	2
Adapted from: Winch, F. E., and G. R. Cunningham. 1969. Selection, identification, and care of Christmas trees and greens. Cornell Univ. Cooperative Extension Service Bulletin 983.

See here for photos of christmas trees.