Christmas Tree - will you use artificial or kill a live one?

[larryllix]

Again, the time comes each year were we have to decide which way to swing on this one.

 

The artificial trees can look so real and be used every year, over and over, saving destroying a live tree each year.

 

Artificial trees, although taking a lot of time to unbend all the damaged tips every year, save the trip out, to negotiate a price on a live one, scratching the car up, and the time it takes to pick out the perfect tree image. So many breeds!

 

Then there is the needle mess that clogs up and forces  us to to buy a new Rhoomba every year. That alone, should be deterrent enough for most people to not go live. People in California and Florida, how does your Rhoomba handle those huge palm tree leaves?  Are there auto-vacs from Texas that claim to be able to handle leaves that large?

 

The live tress can create a nice  evergreen smell to boost the Christmas season spirit. Then there is the fire hazard from a tree that may be too old, not watered correctly, and dried out, full of hot electrical lights. Thank goodness for LED light strings, with their lesser heat fire hazard!

 

 

 

Which way will you go this year?

Drag one home, leaving it in the driveway until every jealous neighbour has peaked out through the Venetian blinds to see it, or silently drag the conveniently reusable tree up from the depths, and then spray some artificial air-freshener around?

[G W]

I'm going with a Festivus Pole.

[Bumbershoot]

I live in Oregon, where bringing home an artificial tree would be an act of apostasy. A big, live tree, preferably a noble fir.

[mwester]

I have a potted norfolk pine that we hang a couple of ornaments on and call a Christmas Tree for a few weeks every year.  Real cheap on lights too - one string will do it.

 

I'll throw a few strings of lights on the railing on the deck, so the neighbors will think we're all Christmas-happy-like, and that'll be that.

[larryllix]

I have some old red.white, green strings on one smaller tree (6') with the whites at the back blinking independently.

 

This year I have a slew of LEDenet RGBWW strips left from my summer wedding tent animations and placed  four 5m RGBWW strips over the peak of the tree. Adapting my animations now.

Wife doesn't like any of the purple, blue, white patterns so I am modifying my tables to be mostly green and red.

 

I never thought I would have to write my own interpreter package for Christmas. Most of it is done from the June wedding though. Need to add some Wait codes for most of the time killers. Too many wild  animations on a Christmas Tree just breaks the theme.

 

Have the master switch hooked into Alexa now. Alexa...turn on/off Christmas Tree. One string Insteon, Four RGBWW strips LEDenet controllers / WiFi.

 

Artificial 6' and 9'.

[lilyoyo1]

I was thinking about putting a picture up of a tree on my tv and putting presents around that. lol. In all seriousness, I visit my mom for Christmas to avoid having to decorate. 

[KeviNH]

My land has a few thousand evergreens; I cut down dozens each year for firewood or just to keep them out of the powerlines or my view of the mountains.   One extra in December will not make a difference.
 

Even if you don't live out in the wilderness, many national parks have a program where you buy a $5 tax stamp from the Federal government (US Forest Service) then you just head over to the National Forest and cut down your own tree.

Tough to beat five bucks for a live government-issued tree!

[Goose66]

I can’t stand artificial trees. They cost 10x what a real tree costs, and you have to have a place in the house to store a 14’ Christmas tree year round. After three or four years, various strands of lights start to go out. Now you’ve got a tree with some burned out bulbs covered over by loosely thrown on new strands of different shaped bulbs. After another couple of years, enough lights have stopped working that you drag the whole thing down to the curb detined to sit in a landfill for the next 1000 years or so, and then go back to Frfontgate and buy another $1200 tree.

Not for me. I go to the same tree farm every year and get a 14 footer, put the stand on it in the driveway, bring it in the front door and set it in the foyer, put the same 6 strands of colored LED lights on it I’ve had for the last eight years, and enjoy the heck out of it over the holiday. On Jan 2, it goes to the wood chipper to become mulch while another one grows in its place out at the tree farm ready to be harvested in 10 years or so.

[larryllix]

I can’t stand artificial trees. They cost 10x what a real tree costs, and you have to have a place in the house to store a 14’ Christmas tree year round. After three or four years, various strands of lights start to go out. Now you’ve got a tree with some burned out bulbs covered over by loosely thrown on new strands of different shaped bulbs. After another couple of years, enough lights have stopped working that you drag the whole thing down to the curb detined to sit in a landfill for the next 1000 years or so, and then go back to Northgate and buy another $1200 tree.

 

Not for me. I go to the same tree farm every year and get a 14 footer, put the stand on it in the driveway, bring it in the front door and set it in the foyer, put the same 6 strands of colored LED lights on it I’ve had for the last eight years, and enjoy the heck out of it over the holiday. On Jan 2, it goes to the wood chipper to become mulch while another one grows in its place out at the tree farm ready to be harvested in 10 years or so.

Wow! I have never paid more than $179 for a tree yet, even the 9 footer. I have noticed they attempt to extort $700-800 out of people for these, now. I bought it right after Christmas on clearance. The US always has amazing clearance sales compared to Canuckistan.

The shorter one I have was prestrung with hundreds of white incandescents that seem to last forever but I ripped them off second year. I like to have some colour and change them when I feel like it.

[stusviews]

Hurry, only one left

[larryllix]

Hurry, only one left

"This item does not ship to Canada." Imagine that!  A 14' tree that doesn't ship to Canada. It might spread some disease to our native trees. LOL

 

 

We have a conifer tree here called a Tamarac. It looks like a fir tree but loses it's needle every fall. Looks dead and then come back with a full head of hair each spring.

[stusviews]

"This item does not ship to Canada." Imagine that!  A 14' tree that doesn't ship to Canada. It might spread some disease to our native trees. LOL

 

larryflix, you are correct again. Even though the tree is not real, I forgot about artificial insemination