The pros and cons of Christmas trees

I LIKE to think of myself
as a traditional sort of
fellow.

Geoff
‘Tobiasson

OVER THE GARDEN GATE

I don’t mean a stodgy, stick-
in-the-mud, small ‘‘c’’ conser-
vative. I would rather you view
me as one who believes in apple
pie and yet still has the courage to
try a little pavlova now and then.

It is this traditionalism which
causes me to be protective of
Christmas.

While revolutionaries of all ages
attempt to turn the plum pudding
‘we call Christmas into a Hostess
‘Twinkie, I shall staunchly defend
your right to hack down a cute
‘little tree and cover it with tinsel,
plastic baubles and garish lights.

Before you Earth Firsters out
there begin burning crosses on my
front lawn, let’s talk about the
environmental implications of
putting up a Christmas tree.

The Pros
“ "Phe vast majovity of the trees
‘we are about to see on the lots are

cultivated or farm-grown trees;
this means that for every tree that

eAvant

44 Your tree should really
be in the house for no
more than 14 days; up on
Dec. 20 and down and out
on Jan. 3.99

is harvested another is planted.
This is far iess harmful to the en-
vironment than the effect of pro-
ducing plastic, artificial trees.
Trees pump oxygen into the at-
mosphere, not noxior:. “:mes and
smoke.

Although the creatier of jobs is
not an environmental issue in the
normal sense, it does have an im-
pact on the economic environment
in smaller B.C. communities. And
even though ihe super stores seem
to have undermined the ability of
charitable organizations such as
the Boy Scouts to use Christmas
tree sales as a method of raising
funds, it still helps.

If the real Christmas tree can
help us maintain our connection
to the natural world, should we
abandon it? I think not, we seem
to need as much help as possible
with the matter of remembering
our roots to the planet, lex alone
our past. And this brings us back
to tradition. The way I see it,
Christmas just wouldn’t be
Christmas without one. _

The Cons

Cons? No such thing! Well, I
guess you could bring up the use
of chemical fertilizers and
pesticides in production. I must
admit to their existence and only
hope that those few growers who

The Avant Gardener
invites you to join the
authors of B.C.’s hottest
selling gardening book,
The Twelve Month
Gardener. Drop by
between 1-2 Saturday,
December 7, and find
cut why Steve Wysail of
the Vancouver Sun says
.Avhat ! like most
about The Twelve
Month Gardener and
why | will be handing it
out at Christmas to all
my friends is that it isn’t
afraid to give answers |,
to what might be
considered dumb
questions....”

Gardener

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continue to use them soon realize
the error of their ways.

We do have a problem with
some people who continue to burn
their tree after Christmas rather
than taking it to one of the free
municipal chipping services. As
with all things, the more we can
do to recycle the better. Even the
few nutrients found locked up in
your Christmas tree are put to
better use when returned to the
earth than blown out the chimney.

Speaking of up in smoke, the
various fire departments on the
North Shore informed me _ that
there are still an average of five to
10 fires per season attributed to
the unsafe maintenance of the
Christmas tree. You would think
that in this age of high-tech,
safety-conscious products people

- would take advantage of all the

information out there in an at-
tempt to have a safe Christmas.

Here are a few tips to help you
and your tree stay green.

First, look for high-quality,
fresh-cut trees. Many of those
cheaper trees found at the mass
merchandisers were cut weeks ago,
kept in coolers and then trucked
from as far away as Oregon. If it
is already dropping needles at the
store, it will be as dry as bone
within days of coming into the
house.

Untie the tree and store it out-

doors where the rain can’t fall on
it. Although it will not dry out as
quickly in a cool spot like the
garage, it will still get drier than if
altowed to bask in some of our
wonderful liquid sunshine.

Do not be in such a rush to put
it up. My wife may view my lack
of enthusiasm as another example
of my penchant for procrastina-
tion, but I see it as a desire to
keep the family safe. Your tree
should really be in the house for
no more than 14 days; up on Dec.
20 and down and out on Jan. 3.
Any longer than this and you will
have kindling plugged into the
wall rather than a tree.

Cutting at least one inch off the
trunk at the bottom of the tree
will reopen the ‘‘arteries’’ that
send moisture up, inte the surface
area but not to such a degree that
any of the heartwood will be
above the water line of your
stand. This cut should be made
immediately before bringing the
tree into the house.

Use CSA-approved lights and
keep the tree away from all
sources of heat. This means heat
registers, fireplaces, televisions
and other heat-producing appli-
ances. Fill the water tray in your
stand daily and use a good-quality
tree preservative.

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