Real or fake Christmas trees ? Lighthearted

[genuinequestion21]

I've not been a very Christmassy person my whole life. So I never decorated for Christmas. So it's all a bit new for me.

I'm a mum now and I got my first Christmas tree last year and went all out for my DD.

I got a fake one last year as it needed to fit into a specific space.

Anyhow, I'm in a bigger house this year and can get whichever tree.

Now the debate has started- fake or real ? What are the benefits of each ?

My in laws are super anti real, whereas my family is super anti fake. I want to get a real one, my husband wants a fake.

I bought a real one today. Any tips on how to maintain it etc ?

This seems a contentious subject. My in laws will definitely comment on it..

I said to my husband, worse comes to worse, we put in in the garden with just lights.

I’d rather have a real tree. I’ve seen some lovely ones. Every year I look at real but they’re so expensive so I stick with my fake one which I’ve had for about 11yrs.
Fake is not good for the environment so I feel I should use it as much as I can rather than get rid of it.

Is the real tree that you have bought grown in a pot, or just cut down and stick in a pot?

Without the really good root system which the pot grown tree will have, it has very little chance of surviving even outdoors from one year to the next.

Even pot grown, a living tree will not be very happy indoors. They really need cool temperature, a not too dry atmosphere and plenty of water. As children, we always had a real tree. It was brought indoors on Christmas Eve and taken back out, looking pretty sorry for itself, twelve nights later.

If your family home is hugh, very draft prone and has no central heating, a real tree will be fine. Otherwise, go for a pre-lit good looking fake.

I've got a lovely fake one which I've had for over 20 years and is still going strong. Better than chopping down 20 actual trees and then throwing them away in January. Also significantly less messy, which is a bonus.

Fake!

I read Hans Christian Anderson's The Fir Tree at a very impressionable age and was harrowed by the tree's fate.

Also I have been warned pine needles can hurt cats' paws.

Our tree was bought reduced just before Christmas over a quarter of a century ago and is still going strong despite being climbed in by two generations of kittens.

We have had both over the years.

Moved house last year and I was determined to get a real one. Which we did. Delivered from a local farm. But we have underfloor heating. Even watering it really well every day and keeping the room pretty cool it shed like anything.

Back to our trusty prelit fake this year!

There was a thread on this a while ago I think - apparently decorate early with fake tree is working class whereas if you're middle class and fork out for a real tree, you put it up later so it's still green at Christmas.

I think a real tree looks nice but fake is more practical, especially with little kids around. Otherwise they get needles stuck in their clothes, eat the soil, pull it over etc. We have a tacky shiny tinselly one that I love. It's getting on for a decade old but still quite plump etc.

If you do buy a fake one I think it pays to invest a bit on one that will last longer.

www.google.com/amp/s/amp.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2018/dec/08/are-real-or-fake-christmas-trees-better-for-the-planet

I much prefer real, but now I have dogs I stick to fake, because of their paws and eyes. You can get some really good fake trees nowadays.

Personally, I'd rather not have this happen in my house

m.youtube.com/watch?v=xr6b9b8FYKk

If your house is big enough and you can afford it then why not get one of each? That's what we do.

We have a huge real one that we have grown from a tiny one in a pot. We have to keep it and decorate it outside now it's so big. Works for us!

Fake all the way.

I think you’ve bought it too early, sorry. If you want a real tree you need to buy it much closer to Christmas. On the other hand if you want it up for a longer time then you need a fake one.

If you’re concerned about sustainability you could consider a pre loved tree.

We get a real one. We like going to choose it each year at the garden centre and ds1 usually chooses a new bauble at the same time. Then we go home for Christmas music, hot chocolates and decorating it.
It wouldn't be the same for me getting it down from a box in the attic.
I have been considering whether a good quality fake is better for the environment though as you could use it for years.

We get real.
Local Christmas tree farm 10 minutes away. You plant two new baby trees in exchange for the one you cut down.
We compost the leaves and branches in January, and the thicker trunk part gets cut and left to dry for halloween firepit the following year.

Fake here as well. Got it in 2001 and still going. I keep thinking of a new one (taller) but never actually get one.

I'd rather go without a tree than have a fake one.

I’ve only ever had a real tree once. I don’t really have a preference of real versus fake, but like my fake tree to look as real as possible- if that makes sense lol.

Real. Smells lovely, looks lovely, supports a local fundraiser.

And is later dried out, cut up and used for kindling.

Fake , I can’t have real because I have lung disease and they really affect my ability to breathe. Added to which we have a dog , my daughter doesn’t like insects which real trees sometimes harbour and my husband dislikes them in general .

My real normally lasts from now till new year, we water it regularly

Personally I am real all the way. I just don't like how fake fake trees look!

I have been considering whether a good quality fake is better for the environment though as you could use it for years.

They're not.

Our real tree lasts for a month, we don't get a lot of needles dropping and the dog and kids leave it alone. It's in the dining room at the front of the house which helps with the kids leaving it alone.

Real. I would have a real one or none at all.

Always had a cut, real one in my parents home. Kept well watered they don't shed too much. The cat never complained about needles, she still loves hiding under it.

I use pot-grown ones now. More sustainable, it comes in shortly before Christmas and spends the rest of the year in a sheltered corner of the garden. Take care not to over water though.