CAES Newswire

 College of Agricultural & Environmental Sciences UGA Cooperative Extension
Menu
Published on 11/21/13

A healthy Christmas tree is the first step to decking the halls

By Savannah Colbert

As temperatures drop and Christmas carols begin playing on the radio, the time to search for the right tree is here. People have been buying and decorating trees to celebrate Christmas for more than 500 years. Almost 30 million live Christmas trees are sold in the U.S. every year. UGA Extension experts share these tips for choosing the right tree.

Planning ahead:

  • Moorhead said to “check the height of your ceiling before leaving the house,” and buy a tree a foot shorter than this to be sure it will fit comfortably inside.
  • Think about the taper and fullness you need, based on the room you are putting it in.

Picking the tree:

  • The freshest trees will be available at choose-and-cut Christmas tree farms. Buying trees from farms also supports local farmers.
  • Shake the tree before you buy it. Lots of needles falling off is a bad sign that can indicate a dead tree.
  • Check for insects and dead needles around the middle of the tree as these could also indicate a dead tree.
  • Be careful not to pick a droopy looking tree, this probably means it’s gone too long without water.
  • Pick a tree with a straight trunk that is between six and eight inches long. This will make it easier to cut the base and put it in a stand.

Caring for the tree:

  • When you get home with your tree, cut an inch off of the base and immediately put it in water.
  • The tree should go in a stand that holds at least one gallon of water.
  • Plain water, without sugar or fertilizer, is best for the tree.
  • Make sure to check the water supply for the tree, especially when you’ve just gotten it because “the first couple of days the tree will go through a lot of water,” Moorhead said.

Options for recycling your tree:

  • Use the main stem for firewood.
  • Create a fish attractor by weighting the tree and sinking it to the bottom of a pond.
  • Grind the tree for mulch.
  • Take it to a box store that will chip the wood and donate it.
  • Donate your tree to “Bring One for the Chipper,” a Keep Georgia Beautiful program that recycles Christmas trees by making them into mulch for use in community projects.

Savannah Colbert is a communications intern with the UGA College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences.

Authors:
Savannah Colbert
Experts/Sources:
Mark Czarnota
Freshly cut Christmas trees lined up for purchase at the Lowe's Home Improvement store in Griffin, Ga.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipisicing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua.
Download Image
Pine trees on the UGA Westbrook Farm in Griffin, Ga. (file photo) CAES News
New book offers property tax guidance to Georgia’s agricultural landowners 07/22/20
Keeping up with changes in Georgia’s property tax laws is a full-time job, and a new book shows the fruits of these efforts.
UGA faculty Nick Fuhrman and James Shelton perform stream fish sampling for their "Natural Resource Management for Teachers" lab. CAES News
CAES faculty innovate in virtual instruction during COVID-19 crisis 05/14/20 Maria M. Lameiras
Learn how seven faculty members tackled distance learning.
Kendall Busher, a CAES horticulture student at the UGA College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, leads a tour of the UGA Campus Arboretum, which is spread across campus. Busher created a web-based walking tour of the arboretum for the UGA Office of Sustainability. CAES News
Horticulture student builds website to introduce new generation to UGA Campus Arboretum 09/12/19 Chad Cain
Usually, visitors to the University of Georgia associate trips to the Athens campus with the hedges and ball fields, but UGA horticulture student Kendall Busher wants them to consider the trees.
Representing a broad cross section of corporations, businesses and organizations throughout Georgia, 25 professionals have been chosen to participate in the Advancing Georgia's Leaders in Agriculture and Forestry (AGL) 2015-2017 class. CAES News
Advancing Georgia’s Leaders in Agriculture and Forestry selects 2019-2020 leadership class 05/29/19 Merritt Melancon
Twenty-five professionals, who represent a wide swath of Georgia’s agriculture and natural resource industries, have been chosen to participate in the 2019-2020 class of Advancing Georgia’s Leaders in Agriculture and Forestry (AGL).
Snakes are a vital part of Georgia's ecosystem but most people don't want more snakes than necessary in their landscapes. To discourage snakes, keep landscapes well trimmed, clean and free of food or debris that could attract mice, rats or other snake prey. This albino corn snake is rare but native to Georgia. CAES News
Snakes around houses and buildings don't have to be killed 07/04/18 Michael Anthony Foster
While snakes can provide significant ecological benefits, they impart fear in many people, hunt fish in ponds, and eat eggs and chicks in poultry houses.
The Southeast Partnership for Advanced Renewables from Carinata (SPARC), as the consortium is known, will identify and develop varieties of carinata that will thrive in the Southeast. SPARC will work to develop every step of the supply chain necessary to produce carinata-based jet fuel for civil and military aviation, industrial chemicals and animal feed. CAES News
From farm fields to flight paths: Researchers working to turn a novel oilseed crop into jet fuel 10/03/17 Merritt Melancon
Researchers have produced biofuels from corn, switchgrass and even algae, but researchers at the University of Georgia will soon study a new source of renewable biofuels: the lesser-known crop of carinata, also known as “Ethiopian mustard.”