December Tree Planting

Please find your December, or should I say Christmas Tree Certificate attached.

 

I hope you had a wonderful Christmas, if you celebrate it – or were able to enjoy a little respite if not.

 

With Christmas being all done, and we move towards 2024, thoughts turn to taking down the decorations and getting back to some sort of normal in our home.  This includes sorting out the tree, and what is the best way to dispose of it or Treecycling, if you will…

 

A real, cut tree left to decompose in landfill produces methane gas which, according to the Carbon Trust is 25 times more potent as a greenhouse gas than carbon dioxide.  In fact, it’s actually better for the environment to burn the tree that it is to throw it away. It simply releases the carbon dioxide stored during growth.

 

So it’s essential that it’s recycled properly to make the least negative impact.  Here are a few ideas –

 

RECYCLE OR REPLANT YOUR TREE

 

Check with your local council to see if they offer a Christmas tree recycling service. Some local councils set up Christmas tree drop off points, and some collect old trees to be recycled.

 

If you’ve got a potted Christmas tree, you can re-plant it back in your garden. You’ll need to re-pot it once it gets bigger and, eventually, it’ll need to go in the garden or be recycled – but the carbon saving will be huge.

 

If you’ve rented a tree, you just need to return it to the farm that supplied it. Some Christmas tree farms even offer a collection service.

 

CREATE A WILDLIFE SANCTUARY

 

Chopped wood makes a lovely haven for the wildlife in your garden – a small pile in a quiet corner of your garden will provide shelter for hedgehogs, bugs and insects.

 

You could even plant your old Christmas tree in a large pot, and use it to hang bird feeders from.

 

USE IT AS FIRE WOOD

 

Have a fire pit or bonfire in the garden? Chop up your old Christmas tree to be used as fire wood. And it’s carbon neutral, as burning your tree emits the same level of carbon dioxide stored when it was growing.

 

Chip it

 

Wood chips can be used in the garden as a mulch, to create walkways and paths or can be added to the compost bin.  This is often what the councils will do with the trees they collect.

 

So 2024 is just around the corner, and it’s a big year for us at The Green Organisation as we will be celebrating our 30th Anniversary.

There will be a few surprises for our members throughout the year, and I can’t wait to start celebrating with you all.