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Real Christmas Trees Or Fake?
December 07 2007
 In these green times, we wonder which is the most environmentally friendly – to buy a real Christmas tree or a fake one.
Initially we may think that fake ones would be best because they can be re-used year after year, but we may have to think again!
There are three tests to determine how green or eco-friendly a product is:
How far it has travelled
What benefit or harm it does to the environment
What are the affects on the planet when we discard it
The most popular real tree in the UK is the Nordman Fir, and 95% of these are grown in the UK. We have over 400 tree farms in the UK selling sustainable Christmas trees, and the owner of Woods Farm in Shirley, near Birmingham, tells us that we should be able to find a local grower within 20 miles of wherever we live. Amazing! That’s what I call buying locally and it also supports local business.
So if we buy a fake tree from a shop three miles away is that better? Well it may be if the shop was making them, but most are made in China – around 5000 miles away! No contest for how far they have travelled then!
So what about benefits or harm to the environment? Well, as a tree grows it absorbs carbon dioxide (a greenhouse gas) and gives off oxygen. A win-win situation! It is also lovely to smell the pine freshness of a real tree and feel its branches. Children experience a living and growing thing. I know they will die if they are not rooted, but if we didn’t buy because of this, then the cut flowers business would not exist. Remember that these trees come from a sustainable source.
The fake tree, on the other hand, does not benefit the environment at all. Even though it can be re-used each year, it uses lots of resources to make it. Round two to the real trees!
The third test is what happens when the tree is discarded. Only half of last year’s real Christmas trees were recycled, but many councils now will recycle them for free, and the chippings are used for compost, paths, and for mulch to protect growing trees.
Fake trees take thousands of years to decompose once we tire of it and provide no benefits. I think round three to the real trees don’t you?!
So, real Christmas trees can be bought locally from a sustainable renewable source, support local growers and businesses, and provide mulch and other uses when they are recycled. Fake trees use up valuable resources, have travelled for thousands of miles and take thousands of years in landfill decomposing. Real Christmas trees -a clear winner!!!
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