A Christmas tree after it’s season. To make use or to throw away?

jowitt.europe

we decorate Christmas trees from our own garden. Sometimes a fir tree, sometimes an alpine pine. A small tree or a big branch. After the season I cut off the branches, lay them on a cloth to dry and collect the dry needles. I make them into herbal salt for inhalations and baths, I use them for giving flavour to my apple vinegar which I use for rinsing the washing and for cleaning my kitchen and bathroom. I am thinking of mixing some into my herbal teas for cold.

The wood, of course, goes into fire. What else?

dipat2005

@jowitt.europe can you put it outside and add bird food to it? Maybe put it in a pot and keep it green.

Merin Porter

I just saw a request from a person in my area asking if folks would save their Christmas trees for her to pick up because her horses love them. I assume they eat the needles or something? Anyway, I had never thought of giving them to someone with horses, but the novelty of it stuck with me!

jowitt.europe

@dipat3005 I know that some people use a fir tree planted in a pot. They bring it in for the season, decorate and then keep it outside and it continues growing. I think it is a good idea.

@Merin Porter this is something new to me. But, I guess reed and elk eat needles in winter, then horses might also do.

dipat2005

@Merin Porter I have never heard of that; what a wonderful thing to do.

Merin Porter

https://community.thegrownetwork.com/discussion/comment/908469#Comment_908469

Thought this thread about it was interesting: https://ihdg.proboards.com/thread/119795

Lisa K

We used to have a living tree and when we would trim it we ran it through a woodchipper we had and used it as mulch.

jowitt.europe

@Merin Porter today I went cross country skiing and saw a herd of llamas nibbling a Christmas tree. It seems that not only horses like them. My daughter who is crazy about horses said that they bring quite a few to the horses.