A real Christmas tree is the thing of Christmas dreams for many people. They’re the perfectly decorated trees you see in movies, shopping centres and town squares. They’re also the Christmassy addition you plan to add to your home every year but run out of time, and instead grab your trusty artificial tree for another year in the limelight.
Well, we’re into the first couple of weeks of December, so before time runs out for another year, here’s our top tips on choosing the perfect real Christmas tree.
What do you want?
They might all look pretty similar but each of the Christmas tree species are slightly different. To find the one that’s best for your family, you need to match it to your needs. Pines or fir trees, for example, are a great choice if you have young children as the needles are much softer. Spruce trees look great, but their needles are sharp and can hurt if touched or stepped on.
Always check its freshness
You want your perfect tree to last for the whole of the festive season so it’s essential to check the freshness before you buy. Bend one of the tree’s needles in half to check. A fresh pine needle will bend but won’t break and fresh fir needles should snap.
Ensure the needles are secure
Secure needles mean a long-lasting tree so it’s really important you check. Get hold of the base of one of the branches and pull your hand towards you, the needles should remain in place. Alternatively, tap the trunk of the tree on the ground, it’s likely to lose a few needles if you do this, which is fine. However, if the tree loses a lot of needles when you do this, move on and choose a different one.
Look out for the colour
Yes, all Christmas trees are green, but depending on their condition, their colour varies. The Christmas tree you choose should be a deep, rich green. Dried out trees will be a dull green/grey, and these should be avoided.
Measure your space
If you’ve ever had a sofa delivered to find it doesn’t fit, you’ll have an idea of how it feels to get a Christmas tree home only to find it’s too big for your home. To avoid this sinking feeling, you should measure your ceiling height, take into consideration the size of your tree stand and also remember to measure your tree before you buy.
Keep it cool and maintain moisture
Avoid standing your tree next to any kind of heat source as it will cause it to dry out quickly. Remember also to keep water in your tree stand at all times to keep your tree looking luscious for longer. For the first few days after bringing your tree home, you may need to top up the water more regularly (probably two or three times over the first few days).
Stick to our top tips and you should have no problem finding a beautiful Christmas tree for your home. Once it’s in and decorated, we’d love to see your photos. Get in touch with your tree efforts on Facebook and Twitter.
