Christmas is almost here which means time to put your tree together.
Michael Caron from USU Extension is the Christmas Tree master and gives us some guidelines on how to care for your real tree to ensure it lasts all season long.
- Watch out for dry leaves: One of the biggest indicators of a good tree will be whether its needles are dry or not. If the bristles are already falling off, avoid that tree. A few dry ones towards the middle of the tree is perfectly normal, though. A trick for testing is to grab the branch and pull on it lightly to see if the needles start to fall off.
- Make sure to measure your tree ahead of time: Make sure that you have the exact measurements of the space of where you want to put your tree to ensure that the tree you cut down and take home will fit perfectly where you want it to.
- Open the pores of the trunk: To ensure that the pores of the tree stay open to absorb water, cut off about a quarter inch from the trunk to re-open the pores, then within a few minutes of doing so, add water so that the pores can start absorbing water as soon as possible. This will ensure that the tree stays hydrated longer which will help it last longer.
- Get a big basin: You want to have a big enough basin that will hold about one gallon of water for your tree.
- Keep away from fireplaces: The dry heat is not only bad for the tree, but it can also tend to start fires.
For more care tips, visit www.garden.usu.edu.
