Love your Christmas tree (From St Albans & Harpenden Review)

Love your Christmas tree

5:30pm Sunday 13th December 2009 in

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Every year millions of us celebrate the season by buying a real Christmas tree and statistics show that the time we are most likely to do this is during the second or third weekends in December.

Having decided to go for real as opposed to artificial the next question is what type of tree to buy. I saw on the BBC news the other day that some popular varieties are in short supply. But, there are plenty of others to choose from.

Bearing in mind that even the smallest trees take a few years to grow it is very difficult for the growers to judge future market trends and public taste is notoriously fickle.

It puts the cost in perspective to remember that it can take up to nine years to produce a 1.4 – 1.8m tree. When choosing your tree bear in mind that the needles on spruce (Picea) tend to snap at the base as the tree dries out whereas those on fir (Abies) and pine (Pinus) are held onto the branch inside a sheath, a bit like a ball and socket joint, which means they don’t drop quite so quickly.

Buy your tree as fresh as possible and follow some basic rules to help it last. It really does pay to look after it. Once chosen and bought get the tree home as soon as possible.

Keep it outdoors, in a sheltered place, until you are ready to set it up and, most important, put it in a bucket of water. To help it last right through the Christmas season try to think of it as a large pot plant or bouquet of flowers, its needs are similar.

If your tree is rootless cut off between 2 and 3 cm from the base. Keep the water level topped up as the tree will use about 500 ml a day. As a general rule ready potted trees tend to stay fresher as they will have some root system left.

Having brought it indoors the next step is to cover it in coloured lights and favourite decorations, pile up presents around it and wait for the big day.