Avoid messy, dropping needles with a few tips on choosing and caring for your Christmas tree.
Choosing the right tree
The cheapest and most commonly available tree on the market is the Norway spruce (Picea abies). Unfortunately, this tree is the most liable to needle loss. The blue spruce, Picea pungens 'Glauca', is better at retaining needles but for 'needle-fast' species choose fir (Abies) or pine (Pinus) species. Of these, the Nordman fir (A. nordmanniana) (pictured right) is the most reliable and the most commonly available.
There are a number of different types of Christmas tree available: cut, potted and pot-grown. Cut trees have been sawn down in the field where they were grown and have no roots; potted and rootballed trees have been grown in the field and then lifted and either potted up before sale or their roots covered in hessian or plastic; pot-grown trees have been grown for all or most of their life in a container.
Roots or no roots?
Treat rootless, cut trees a bit like a cut flower. Before bringing indoors, saw off the bottom couple of inches of the main trunk. When inside, stand them in a container of water and keep this topped up. Christmas tree stands that incorporate a reservoir are a good investment. Using a bucket of sand or soil is not a good idea as the sand/soil will prevent the tree from taking up water.
Field-grown trees with roots, potted up for sale or by you after sale, should last longer and keep their needles provided the compost is kept moist throughout their stay indoors.
But, if you want a tree for planting in the garden after Christmas, pot-grown trees survive best. Again the compost should be kept moist while the tree is inside. If you intend to keep the tree after Christmas - either potted up or for planting in the garden - it's essential the tree is brought inside for as short a time as possible and it is carefully looked after - otherwise it is likely to die or certainly take a long time to recover.
Whichever tree you choose, make sure it doesn't look dried out and shriveled when you buy it. Gently run your fingers down one of the lower branches - the needles should stay fast.
Making the most of your Christmas tree
Christmas trees hate the warm, dry atmosphere of our homes, so try and leave them outside for as long as possible and only bring them indoors for a maximum of say 12-15 days. Leave them outside in a cool, sheltered position, away from direct sunlight and strong winds.
Always position them in a cool room or as far away as possible from direct heat - such as an open fire or radiator.
Using an anti-transpirant sprays, such as Spray 'n' Save (sold at garden centres and other outlets stocking Christmas trees) will also prolong the display. This must be sprayed on the tree before it is brought inside.
A cut tree can drink up to 2-litres (3 pints) of water per day depending on its size and the temperature of the room. Always keep the water reservoir topped up or the compost moist - but not waterlogged.
A tree is not just for Christmas...
If you do intend to plant out your potted Christmas tree:
- Take it out as soon as possible after Christmas.
- Regularly spray or mist the foliage to reduce needle loss.
- Keep the compost moist, but not overwet or waterlogged.
- If the weather is extremely cold or frosty, give it an acclimatisation period in a cold greenhouse, garage or shed before exposing it to the extremes of the weather.