Christmas Trees Should Smell Good

The headline reasonably much sums up my statement . But my chief would not be well-chosen with a five word web log post , so allow me to share a few more reasons why I ’d never let an artificial Christmas tree through my front door .

I make no claims of being a Christmas treemaven , a Yiddish word meaningexpert , orconnoisseur(a Gallic discussion meaningmaven ) . I ’m from a center - family Judaic upbringing and I only knew Christmas trees from the homes of my non - gefilte - Pisces the Fishes - eating pal . I commemorate Jay ’s metal atomic number 47 contraption with therotating multicolor floodlight . Better , but still middling bizarre , was Terry ’s cutting off tree incrust in robin ’s egg blue flocking — but at least it smelled like a works .

My Ideal Tree

Christmas trees started appear in my living room after moving out of my folks ’ shoes and setting up housekeeping with a girlfriend from a more Norman Rockwell bringing up . Over the year , I ’ve refined my criterion for the perfect tree diagram :

• Douglas Fir , because it has more space between the ramification for ornaments than the Michelin Man geomorphology of Noble Firs.• A strong leader to oblige the cone - mold , atomic number 29 wire - hirsute , reddened pipe - cleaner wing angel my son made when he was little.• The enliven , sweet odour of tarry conifer phonograph needle ( overpowered for a sidereal day or two by the linger fragrance of volatilized peanut oil , potatoes , and onions from our annual Potato Latke Gorging Night ) .

It ’s only in recent years that I ’ve opine about where these Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree issue forth from and how they get in in Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree lots around the land . I ’ve wondered whether cutting down live trees for a few weeks of custom is at odds with my professed stance regarding sustainable living .

So I did a small sleuthing and , for me , I can in spades submit that real trees advance the enviro - conflict , hand down .

Fake Trees, Ugh!

My research took me to the internet site of the American Christmas Tree Association ( ACTA ) , and although they ’ve got a “ dot - org ” web name and address and non - profit status , it looks more like the work of a hired PR adviser for the fake Christmas tree diagram industry .

ACTA puzzle out really operose to convert consumers that phony trees made from polyvinyl chloride ( PVC ) are good for the environment than cut trees . One superficial line of credit of logic argues that our homes have PVC - found rampart siding and kitchen floor , and therefore , PVCmustbe perfectly safe .

handily , there ’s no mention of the immense environmental degradation that come from extracting crude oil from the terra firma , transforming it into PVC , the resulting carcinogenic by-product , or that PVC does not break up . Nothing about the majority of artificial trees coming from China , where environmental and proletarian wellness regulations are most non - actual . And where ’s the stuff about the carbon footmark go away from ship their production to our shores ?

Killing A Tree is Greener?

So what about the real thing ? I wondered whether Christmas tree diagram production has morphed into a Big Ag , Frankensteinian ogre . And , if the Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree in my keep way was trucked 800 miles from Oregon , how sustainable really canthatbe ? I needed an expert .

“ There ’s no degree in Christmas - tree - ology , ” said Michael Bondi , Professor of Forestry and Extension Agent when I phoned him at Oregon State University . “ But if there were one , I ’d have it . ”

Mike ’s job is two - fold for thePacific Northwest Christmas Tree Association : help tree farmers improve their production , while further cultivation practices that are gentle on the planet .

“ Many of the grower I go with are mom and pop procedure , live on the same land where the tree are grown , ” said Bondi , “ so they tend to be good shop steward of the surroundings . ”

Bondi explained how tree farm provide benefits to wildlife , let in habitat for beneficial insect , shelter for deer and bunnies , perches for razzing , and keep the land out of more intensive development . Wood dissipation products get composted and returned to the soil .

Cut Tree even get a big thumbs up from Greenpeace , tell that “ Real trees are carbon copy neutral , absorbing as much carbon copy dioxide … as they will emit when burn or left to decompose . ” ( For more green holiday musical theme , check thisGreenpeace site . )

On the other side of the continent isWolgast Tree Farm , in Sommerset , New Jersey . Len Wolgast is a strike out prof of Wildlife Management at Rutgers University , and his married woman , Cathy , hold a arcdegree in the same subject . These are the great unwashed with a strong dedication to the environment , receiving the River Friendly Farm certification for their committal to protecting water supply resources in the United States Department of State . They boast that “ over 180 snort species , at least 27 mammal specie and 15 unlike species of reptiles and amphibians have been sight on our Christmas tree farm . ”

But what about the carbon footprint produced from transporting these conscientiously grownup trees ? Bondi correspond that the impingement get bigger when the tree are stretch on diesel motor trucks and embark crossbreed - country . One solvent is buying prefer - and - cut trees from a farm in your area . TheGreen Promise websitelists farmer throughout the country using manifest organic develop drill , thereby reducing the distance trees have to jaunt .

Keep It Simple

And then , there ’s an even dewy-eyed , greenish resolution that just requires a plane ofpegboard , a jigsaw , and a can of unripe paint . I invented this little screen background Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree when Lin and I were starving college scholar go in a tiny flat . It ’s predrilled for hanging ornaments and poking tiny light bulbs through , expect no watering to keep it fresh , and packs away under the bed when you ’re done .

The only matter missing is the smell . Nothing a bottle of Pine - Sol ca n’t pay off .

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