It’s that time of year when trees come indoors – yes, Christmas is here and thousands of homes will be furnished with beautiful conifers.

Christmas trees are part and parcel of our festive celebrations and many families are happy to pay anything between £20 and £60 each year for a decent tree.

While the cost may put some people off the idea of investing in a tree every Christmas, there is also the idea of waste. Come the first week in January and there will instead be thousands of sad-looking trees heading for the recycling.

But there is another option – and that is grow your own.

Living Christmas trees

A trend does appear to developing for people decorating trees that remain in their garden – and it’s not just Christmas trees. While lights have been added to beautiful external trees for years, baubles are starting to make an appearance in the garden too.

More notable, Christmas trees are finding a place in family gardens. While for most of the year they stand unnoticed as a conifer, come Christmas these look fantastic with lights added.

Environmentally-aware consumers have also chosen to invest in potted Christmas trees, which while more expensive at the outset obviously cost less in the long-run.

Adding a Christmas tree to the garden

Most living Christmas trees come in a pot for ease of transport and storage. If you choose to opt for a potted version it is advisable to re-pot the tree every year to allow it to grow.

Conifers as a general rule are easy trees to maintain. The only considerations with a potted Christmas tree will be to maintain the shape with regular trimming and keep an eye on the growth of larger branches while removing any that die.

Alternatively, the tree could be planted into the garden from the pot.

To plant a Christmas tree directly into your garden you will need to ensure it has the root ball still attached.

Like potted Christmas trees, once in the ground the tree will be easy to look after and require little maintenance aside of trimming.

Beware though, Christmas trees can grow quickly and substantially – reaching up to 50 feet.

Living trees also need to spend less time inside to avoid being damaged – around 10 days is the average time recommended.

When thinking about your Christmas tree this year, turn your thoughts to the garden and consider whether it would welcome a festive addition.

For any information on tree maintenance contact Garden Busters.

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