Your points are good, but not always complete. SOME tree farms do indeed use pesticides, but very few small tree farmers do- those tend to be the big industrial types. If you buy your tree at a farmers market, you can ask the farmer.

One of the benefits of growing Christmas trees is that almost never do they need to be fertilized. One of the reasons I quit growing them is that my soils are naturally quite fertile- and the trees grow TOO fast, making them leggy and unsalable- unless you “shear” them, very consistently. Huge amount of work there- profit way down.

Revert to forest- sure, a lovely idea, but not an option if you have a family to feed, as most real farmers do- you need income. Letting your sandy fields go to forest usually means no income for 40 years. In fact, many Christmas tree farms wind up going back to forest eventually- when the market shifts, or the farmer gets tired of it- there the trees are, and the wildlife, that will start planting all the other tree species available. Re-clearing the land for row crops is rarely economic.

Mrs. Bick- sure, memories are what Christmas is about- even if they’re aluminum!

I had some friends come for a tree once- and they didn’t like my lovely Scotch or white pines, nor the spruces. Their childhood had been poor- and the tree they remembered was an Eastern red cedar their father had been able to cut for free in the woods. Nobody uses them for Christmas, really. I found them one in our woods- but the only problem was it was brown, not green, for Christmas, as red cedars usually are. I made them happy with my suggestion they could take green food-color, mix it in plain water, and spray it on with any old spray bottle. It worked fine, and they had a great Christmas, with the look and smell they remembered. Only green this time.

I also have a little bit of our family’s history… an aluminum tree. You know, the shiny silver ones? It was my grandmother’s (one of 3!), and putting it up brings back fond and happy memories from my childhood. And really, with this tree being in use for well over 40 years, I think we have done well in our simple pursuit to incorporate our history and traditions into our family’s growing “green movement”. I know many think they are tacky, odd and just plain ugly, but our silver tree stands decked out in red glass ornaments in a quiet corner of our bedroom, out of the harm of our 3 children. And it brings a smile to my face every time I view it, and I wouldn’t have it any other way!

So many of the xmas trees in the US are shipped down from Canada, having already been chopped about 6 or 8 wks ahead of when they’re sold. When you have a fresh tree, its needles barely drop (less vacuuming!). Since my mother is German and we light candles on the tree (no tree- or housefires in their 37 years of marriage, just for the record), having a “wet” tree is important.

That said, I don’t see anything wrong with buying a live tree in a pot or even a chopped down live tree from an organic Christmas tree farm. Those trees are grown to be harvested and replanted.

But you’re right, reusing is probably the best solution… as long as your fake tree is not off-gassing something noxious into your abode.

But my husband’s family, not from greenness but from disorganization, used to just hang ornaments on the window shutters, the mantel, wires strung on the wall, whatever, and call it “a Christmas-like area.” There’s a greener option for sure!