Thinking of getting a real tree for the first time...

[macnab]

We've always had a fake tree. Lots of allergies & asthma in my family growing up and I'm quite allergic to all sorts of things so when I moved out I just kept with the fake trees. We have a nice one stored in the attic but we've been given the offer of a lovely real tree so now I'm wondering if we should.

What would I need to go with it? I have a metal base thingy for my fake tree but its just a thing that sort of screws onto the bottom of the tree, there's nowhere to put water - would a real tree need water? Do I just buy a bucket??

Anything else I need to know?

Thank you [santa]

Growing up, we always had fake trees but OH has always insisted we have a real tree.

We bought a base for the tree and put water in the bottom of it to help the tree last longer.

I have a tree skirt from the poundshop to collect the needles, although it doesn't do much other than look pretty.

The biggest issue is disposal. Firstly, the needles fall off as we take it down and out (we put it in a duvet cover to minimise). Secondly, our local authority don't do collections, so we have to take it to the recycling centre ourselves.

We have always had a real tree, and for years went for bucket of sand with bricks to wedge approach, the usually a wobbly tree and always sand on the carpet. Then we invested in one of these. It's easy to use and holds a lot of water, which you shoukd keep topped up.
They are not cheap and come in various sizes depending on the height of your tree. But it works superbly. I would advise against going for a cheaper version, DS2 did and it was useless. Various firms sell them including Amazon.

I am interested in this too. When should you buy a real tree so it looks good on the day?

We have one of those tree holders tricky suggests. Hardest thing is getting the tree straight but once it is up they are really secure.

Our council don't collect individual trees but we are allowed to chop them up and dispose of them in our garden waste wheelie-bins.

We used to buy a tree from a shop about 5 minutes walk away. They chopped the end, tapered it a bit and netted it .
I bought a tree from Homebase before that and spent ages hoovering the needles out of the boot.

We have a cast iron tree base that holds water after the ceramic one cracked.

We use a faux tree now. Cheaper in the long run, if you invest they last ages. More even (my last real tree was a bit sad'n'scabby)

I don't really like the smell of pine so no loss.
And minimal mess.

DH said "Do you want a real tree this year"? . I'm tempted .

DO IT! So much classier nicer.

Nothing better than holding a succession of trees up to judge shape and height etc. They are very spiky though be warned.

Buy it anytime in December and get them to saw a bit off the bottom ( most places do this anyway). Keep it in the net and put it in a bucket of water outside to soak up what it can for a few days.

Put it in a bucket, special stand or I use a large flower pot that doesn't have a hole ( so a crap flower pot). I use 3 old bricks to prop it up in the pot fill it with water. Remove the netting once in situ and hey presto!

My local council collects garden waste so they do a special Christmas tree collect in early Jan.

You then get the smell of Christmas into January as you get needles everywhere in your vacuum.

Do it, so much nicer than a fake tree.

We just put it into a tree holder with no water. I thjnk it's the Bruce Fir that lasts longest, but that's probably googleable.

The council collects them afterwards, although generally we put ours on the bonfire.

Once we got a real one, we didn't go back to tacky fake one

The sort of stand that Trickydecision linked to works best. If you want to keep the tree hanging around for more than a couple of weeks, you probably ought to saw an inch off the bottom, but for a fortnight it doesn't make much of a difference. Top the stand up with water every couple of days. Avoid spilling water on the tree lights.

If you get a choice of tree, it's worth considering the different varieties. The traditional ones are spiky and shed needles everywhere but are easier to fit into small spaces and smell gorgeous. Nordmanns seem to be the most popular these days. They are bushy and soft and keep their needles well, but have a very big circumference so aren't great in small rooms or awkward spaces. They don't smell as strongly as the other types of tree. I like Fraser firs the best - they are slim with good needle retention, aren't spiky and smell gorgeous.

If you get your tree from somewhere like Homebase, you are better off buying the tree fairly early in December and keeping it outside until you want to put it up, because the nicely shaped trees tend to be sold first. If you will be going to a forest and getting it chopped down just for you, then that doesn't apply.

Ok you've sold it to me

Off to google tree bases etc (loving my new word "googleable" !)

We bought a real tree a few years, about 4ft, with roots on, in a pot. Put it outside and used it again the next year. Third year it was too heavy to bring in so we chopped it down and used it!

I meant we used it inside and then put it outside after Christmas

We have a real one every year, absolutely love it. The Dc take turns to choose it, dp insists we get an 8ft one every year and then has to saw a bit off.
We go to a lovely farm where they have reindeer and other animals, depending on which dc chooses we can be choosing for 10 minutes or an hour.
Definitely invest in a proper base as linked to above, and make sure you cut off a couple of lower branches to make it easier to water among all the presents.

Keep it topped up, I'd recommend a non drop one although they are more pricey, depends on how bothered you are about needles everywhere.

We usually get ours about 10 days before Christmas and take it out on Boxing Day and it's usually still in good condition. Our local council take them away if you saw big ones in half.

Has anyone bought an IKEA tree before?

I'm considering a real one this year too after a random allergic reaction at Christmas time 7 years ago that was put down to the tree.