by Ruth Belena

Created on: December 16, 2008

Any Christmas tree can be recycled, in an eco-friendly way, when the celebrations are over. There are number of options for recycling a real Christmas tree, and even an artificial Christmas tree could be put to new use.

If the Christmas tree has no roots it will not live, but it can still be used outdoors, and will be wonderfully helpful to other trees and bushes.

A tree chipper or wood shredder can reduce your Christmas tree to small fragments. Christmas tree chippings can be used to create a natural forest scent and feel to a garden. They can be spread thickly on a play area, along garden paths, or used for woodland walkways. Wood chips can be added to compost, and makes a useful mulch.

Wood chip can be spread around garden plants, shrubs and trees, and will reduces the amount of yard work and garden tasks in the coming year:

- Laying wood chips around plants reduces the need for watering, because it allows for more rain absorption.

- Spreading wood chips onto a flower bed is a safe way to control weeds, with no need for chemical weed killers or herbicides.

- A good layer of mulch prevents soil and roots from overheating in hot weather, and eliminates risk of injury to tree trunks from lawnmowers and strimmers.

- Mulching prevents soil compacting around roots and encourages earthworms, making better aerated soil, adding nutrients to the soil as the wood decomposes.

Pine tree needles also make an excellent garden mulch, so you may want to strip the needles from the Christmas tree first. Pine needles can be stored in paper sacks, in a dry airy place. When used at planting time, in the Spring, the mulch will stimulate plant growth, and improve resistance to disease and insects.

If you have no outdoor space, you can offer your Christmas tree to someone who can use it for chipping and mulching, or find a local recycling service that accepts unwanted Christmas trees for recycling.

Never attempt to burn a Christmas tree, because of the high resin content, unless this can be done safely out of doors.

If you bought a Christmas tree with its roots still attached, and it has been well kept in a container over Christmas, the tree can be placed outside at the start of the new year, and it will continue to grow.

A small Christmas tree can be left in a good sized pot, but it is better for the tree to be planted where there is enough space to allow it to grow and spread its roots. If the ground is frozen and there is danger from bad weather over the coming months, keep the tree protected in its pot, until the ground is soft and warm enough to plant it out.

If you don't have space available to plant a tree, you could find a friend or family member who would really like to have a real live Christmas tree growing in their yard.

An artificial tree should last for years, but at some point you may need to dispose of one. Try to give it away, or donate it to charity, if it is still usable or can be resold. Alternatively, you could remove the branches with wire cutters, and make them into Christmas decorations, by bending the branches into shapes or wreaths. These could be used the following Christmas, or given to someone who will make use of them.

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