It's Christmas, the snow is here

What, you say…but I’m cutting down a tree and I’m driving to get it. Well, humbug, I say. Here’s a little fertilizer for you – think about a fake tree and all the resources needed to bring it to your home. The manufacturing, the packaging, the shipping, the distribution – all excessive. You guessed it they probably come from China, good for trade but not so good for us. Now that’s just the tip of the iceberg, because they are made with PVC or plastic and contain chemicals that are not biodegradable. That means when your fake tree begins to outgrow you, that you throw it in the garbage, unless you want to spend the time to find it another home…that could be challenging with consumer habits of today, everything new.

So chop to it and take a family trip out to a local farm, you can probably find one that is organic and has no pesticides. Guess what? After Christmas that tree has tons of uses. Some places use them as erosion barriers for beaches, other’s as shelter for (are you ready) fish. The city of Toronto chips the trees and turns it into compost and mulch. If you don’t want to chop a tree down…then just take a few boughs. The smell…oh, the smell.

And another thing, well a couple actually, think about Halloween, many of us buy pumpkins and simply put we harvest them. Just like the tree, we harvest them. The farmer plants more for the next year, no clear cutting, no forests are ruined. Those trees produce oxygen, in fact over 5 million Christmas trees in Canada produce enough oxygen for over 1 million people….wow! And in keeping with the community spirit, it actually promotes a good local economy and employs people. Many retailers and tree providers are also catching on and will plant a sapling in place of a tree purchase, though some purely for marketing reasons it still gets the end result we need.

Here’s a Christmas Tree Farm Finder or if you plan to find a local tree that’s already been chopped down for you, you may want to consider supporting a local charity group that sells trees in your neighbourhood.

But there is a choice that’s catching on in more moderate climates, perhaps Vancouver has adopted it.. Plant your feet on the ground for this one – a tree with roots. It comes in a pot and after Christmas, it simply gets planted. What a novel idea! There’s no more explaining with this one, that’s it.

Now all this said and done, there’s another aspect that supersedes all of this. The spirit of the season. The connection with family and loved ones. The day trip, that special car ride, perhaps a sleigh ride, warm cider, hot chocolate, some fresh air and a lasting memory. Keep the spirit of Christmas alive and grow, err, go get a tree this Christmas.

if you liked this post, take a gander at these ones!

• Simple Christmas Pleasures
• a few things to make your christmas green
• keeping your holiday green and simple
• Holiday Wishes from Simply Stephen
• pay it forward christmas gifts