Miracle-Gro For Christmas Trees

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When setting up your Christmas tree, remember to keep it well away from heat sources, including heat registers, fireplaces, wood-burning stoves, space heaters, and south-facing windows, as these will accelerate the drying process. Pine needles are long, pointed, and small clusters of needles will come from a single point on the stem. Pine cones are hard and woody with larger scales than spruce. The clusters of male cones produce vast amounts of pollen on lower branches in spring. Yew and cedar trees can be confused with the edible trees, but must not be eaten as they are poisonous. Yew doesn’t have the citrusy smell in its needles that fir has. Yew needles are matte green underneath and do not carry the hallmark white lines like fir needles and eating even a small handful of yew leaves can be fatal. Millions of families around the UK celebrated Christmas with a beautiful Fir or Spruce tree in their home, but when the decorations are taken down, it’s important that we dispose of trees sustainably. If you’re buying a pre-cut tree from a retail store, church group, or scout troop, ask how long ago the trees were harvested and where they came from. Many Christmas trees are harvested weeks in advance and shipped long distances to local markets. If the trees were cut more than three to four weeks ago, shop elsewhere. Be sure to inspect the tree by feeling its needles, which should be pliable and firmly attached. Avoid any tree with dry and brittle needles.

If money is an issue, Ross Duncton at Columbia Threadneedle Investments suggests speaking to friends and family members so as to “manage expectations with gift-giving to take some pressure off the purse strings this year”. No one will want you to get into financial difficulty to fund the festive period, he says. There are a few simple steps to help keep your Christmas tree alive for longer, and ensure your tannenbaum doesn’t become a tannen-bummer. (A tannenbaum, by the way, is a fir tree.) There are three main types of Christmas tree belonging to the conifer family, meaning cone bearing: the fir, the spruce and the pine. Here's how to identify them: Cover and place in the fridge for 3-24 hours. The longer you leave it, the more firm the salmon will become. Local authorities often arrange drop-off points or special collections of trees in early January and advertise the dates this will take placeIf, however, you have an artificial tree, then make sure to look at ways of keeping them for future Christmases so they don’t end up in landfill where they can take centuries to decompose. Drop your tree off at a recycling centre where it can be turned into chippings for paths or turned into soil Look for an organisation or charity that offers a ‘treecyling’ service where it could be used to build effective flood barriers in communities around the UK

A household with a string of 200 LED lights using 6W power could expect to increase their bills by 27p if used for six hours a day for 22 days over the whole festive period, based on current electricity prices, according to Uswitch calculations. Battery-powered lights are another good option, especially if you already have a stash of batteries at home. You can always turn off other lights in the room and enjoy the glow. Fir trees often have a classic Christmas tree shape: their branches are dense and slightly upturned. The needles are short, soft, flat, and have a rounded edge and they connect to the stem by suction cup-like attachments. Let your children make paper chains. These are inexpensive to buy, and as a bonus keep them entertained for a while. When mine were little, they also enjoyed making snowmen from old toilet roll tubes and cotton wool, so let them loose with a few Christmas craft supplies.”Put the spruce shoot, or douglas fir, in a blender with 750ml tequila and blend until the liquid turns a nice light green. Pass the liquid through a cloth or muslin to remove any hard bits of tree. A Christmas pudding. Try to work out the food quantities you need to buy. Photograph: esp_imaging/Getty Images As the country winds down from the festive period, millions of households and businesses will be looking to take down their Christmas decorations – and in total dispose of eight million Christmas trees. If you are thinking about getting an artificial tree, it is worth making a considered choice. According to the Carbon Trust, a 6ft 6in (2 metre) artificial tree is responsible for about 90lb (40kg) of greenhouse gas emissions – which means you need to reuse it for about 10 Christmases to keep its environmental impact lower than buying a real tree every year, depending on the materials used in the fake tree. At Christmas time, many of us get carried away, with cheese, biscuits, chocolate, alcohol and vegetables the foods people often buy too much of. If you are broke but still hosting this year, why not discuss sharing the shopping costs or ask guests to contribute something to the meal.

Once you’ve selected your live tree, you’ll need to take care of it immediately to keep it alive. Tchukki Andersen, a staff arborist for the Tree Care Industry Association, suggests wrapping it in a plastic tarp to protect it on the journey home. If you bought a pre-cut tree, when you get it home, use a handsaw or chainsaw to make a fresh cut to remove about an inch or so of wood from the bottom of the trunk. A natural cold remedy, best made with the young growth in late spring and summer. About two tablespoons of chopped needles will make one strong cup. Add the salmon fillets and pour the rest of the spruce mix on top and turn the fish to ensure it is coated with the mixture.You will need: Dried pine cones, lard or suet, seeds, nuts, raisins, grated cheese, a bowl, string, scissors. Sky-high energy bills have meant a renewed focus on home usage but making your home look festive with fairy lights won’t add much to your bills. You should avoid decorations that use older lights with halogen and incandescent bulbs because they use a lot more energy but outdoor lights are often made using cheap-to-run LED lights.

According to the British Christmas Tree Growers Association, between six and eight million real Christmas trees are sold in the UK every year; A typical six to seven foot high Christmas tree is between 10 and 12 years old; Nordmann Firs are the most popular in homes, making up 80% of those sold, with Norway Spruce making up 10-15% Where you choose to shop is not always about price, and stores such as Waitrose pride themselves on their ethical and taste credentials, which are harder to compare. However, this year more than most, it may be the overriding factor. Real Christmas trees are recyclable and can be shredded into chippings, which are then used in parks or woodland areas. Alternatively you can replant them, meaning you can enjoy your tree for years to come.Andersen points out that some people swear by commercial Christmas tree preservatives, which can be mixed into the water in the stand. Others have said that they’ve had success by mixing a tablespoon of corn syrup or sugar into the water as a food source for the tree. Some people even add aspirin to the water. Jane Berry, who runs the Shoestring Cottage money-saving blog, suggests heading to charity shops and getting creative yourself. “You will find a good selection of secondhand decorations in charity shops,” she says. “They bring them out about now and they tend to be very cheap.” The underside of the needle will have two white strips with a green line at the centre and when crushed will have a strong smell of resin or citrus. While some keen Christmas-lovers may have hung up the decorations already, most households wait until December before putting up the tree, meaning this is the weekend many families will be heading to the garden centre, and hunting for baubles and fairy lights in the loft. Record food price inflation means many households will be spending less money on Christmas meals this year. Photograph: The Irish Image Collection/Getty Images/Design Pics RF