The stockings are hung by the chimney with care, but how do can one make the Christmas tree last this year?
Tips Before Buying a Christas Tree
The most important thing about keeping a Christmas tree fresh throughout the holiday season is to buy a tree that is freshly cut and was recently offered for sale after being cut. Fresh-cut trees will last longer.
When selecting your Christmas tree, be sure to choose one with moist, green needles. If the needles are dry, select a different one. While still in the store, grasp the tree at the trunk and shake it gently. Watch how many needles fall off. While some needle loss is normal, if a significant number of needles falls from the tree, it's likely already too dry to purchase and preserve for the holiday season.
Ask the store personnel to trim or cut a thin section from the base of the trunk before you take it home. This will help preserve the tree once it's at home.
Once you've brought your new Christmas tree home, it's time to prepare it to last the entire holiday season. The first step is to, again, shake the tree gently to remove any loose needles. When doing this, you can put newspaper or an old sheet under the tree before shaking it to make the needle cleanup easier.
Next, properly place the Christmas tree into the appropriate stand for the trunk size. Tree stands should have a large enough reservoir for the tree to hold one quart of water for each foot of height. Secure in the stand, but be sure to use plastic tips on metal spikes that hold. If not, the metal will puncture the tree and cause sap leakage that can cause your tree to die faster.
Prepare Christmas Tree Preservative
There is a simple recipe you can find online or from talking to any The Home Depot store gardeners that will help preserve your holiday centerpiece for long into the Christmas season. While the proportions differ from one recipe to another, the ingredients are the same:
- 1 Quart water
- 2 Cups Clear / White Corn Syrup (Karo light syrup)
- 2 Tblsp Chlorine Bleach
- 2-4 Crushed powdered iron supplements
Mix all items together and heat until thoroughly blended. Cool the mixture to room temperature and then pour into the water reservoir of the tree stand. You'll want to repeat this process once per week throughout the season.
During the Christmas season, be sure to keep the water in the reservoir filled. Some large fresh trees will suck up a lot of water. You might be surprised how long the tree will stay green and fresh looking if you follow these steps, but it can turn dry and brittle quite quickly if you do not.
Thank you to the fine employees of The League City, Texas The Home Depot for the information on how to best preserve a Christmas tree this holiday season. Happy holidays to everyone!
Michelle L Devon - ~~Michelle Devon has 15 years of writing and over a decade of editorial experience, working with hundreds of publications and ...
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