Sustainable Christmas Trees?

Potted Christmas trees waiting for their forever homes!

For those of you that celebrate the holiday and spend good money on freshly cut trees, why not consider a living Christmas tree this year? You could invest a little more for one that you could later use to improve your landscape, serve as a wind barrier, provide shade, privacy and make the memory of Christmas 2016 last for years to come. There is an organization in California that rents potted Christmas trees. In fact, you can rent the same one, year after year. They even deliver and pick up. I'm not aware of any such business here in Massachusetts, but the living tree concept seems to be catching on. ClickRenting Potted Christmas trees Folks in Canada also appear to be ahead of the game:http://www.evergrowchristmastrees.ca

A Norfolk Pine, one of my living Christmas trees. This one stays indoors year round.

     Since we haven't had a good freeze, now is a good time to dig a hole twice the size of the rootball of your selected evergreen and fill it with mulch until you are ready to plant it after the holiday. Make sure you pick a variety that grows well in our climate. Look around your neighborhood to see what is thriving well and buy a landscape grade specimen in a five to fifteen gallon can. In between transfers from the nursery to your house, and the house to the yard for planting allow a couple of days for the tree to acclimate to the temperature change by storing it in the garage, shed or porch. You can put it in some sort of tub or galvanized container with about two inches of gravel. To keep it evenly moist, spread crushed ice across the top of the rootball and use a rod or pipe to make sure the water level is no higher than the gravel base. While indoors, it should not be placed near any heat vent or the fireplace.
     Your tree should not be kept in your warm home for more than ten days. Plant it right after the holiday, hopefully on a mild day, by putting the rootball into the hole, removing the burlap and backfilling with the soil. Tap it down, give it a good soaking and cover it well with mulch. If you are planting it where there is little wind block, consider putting up some sort of protective barrier to get it through the first winter. If you'd rather not keep the tree, make arrangements to donate it to a local park or contact your favorite group in town, Friends of Newburyport Trees!
     As always, we welcome your donations and consideration to purchase a tree in the memory or honor of a loved one. Send to Box 1155, Newburyport, MA 01950 or visit FONT here.

According to This Old House, the Nordmann  Fir is a good choice for the Northeast region.

Happy Holidays from Kim, Jean, Jane, Hugh and Cris!