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What About Living Christmas TreesWhat About Living Christmas Trees?Every year during the Christmas season, fans of growing things are tempted by little Christmas-tree looking conifers being sold in the store.
So, how do you give these things a chance at survival? Again, I hinted at it earlier. Once ANY tree has been subjected to a heavy frost or two, it starts to go dormant - even evergreens. Think of it as a sort of "hibernation." If you take ANY living thing that has been "hibernating" outdoors in freezing temperatures, then plop it into a warm living room, you'll put it into a shock from which it may not recover. That's why the directions for the big ($75-200) "Living Christmas Trees" tell you to spend two weeks gradually acclimating the tree to warmer temperatures. Then they tell you to leave the tree indoors for no more than three days. (The dry air in a heated house also stresses the plant, even if you keep the roots moist.) Finally, the instructions tell you to spend another two weeks gradually acclimating the tree to cooler temperatures before you stick it into the ground. This lets the tree start to go dormant again so it doesn't go into shock when it's exposed to very cold temperatures. This CAN be done. Some people do it every year. But if someone gave me $200 and told me I needed to spend it on a "Living Christmas Tree," I'd seriously consider spending $50 on a cut tree and spending the other $150 on a live tree to plant right into the ground - a year from now I'd still have the $150 tree at any rate, and if I didn't, at least I'd have a warranty on it, which you don't usually get on trees you use in your house. That said, the little Dwarf Alberta Spruce I saw at Lowes have a much shorter list of instructions, and I believe, a greater chance of survival, if you want to go that route. The instructions seem tailor-made for climates where it doesn't get REALLY cold In December, 2006, I saw several other varieties that were not dwarf trees, such as "Black Hills Spruce" sold the same way. My guess (based on experience with other trees) is that these are a little touchier than the Dwarf Albertas, but that they might survive if you're very careful. One variety that looked great was called a Lemon Cypress. Unfortunately, the label on that plant said it wouldn't survive below -10F, which rules it out as an outdoor plant for us. In other words, if you want to take a risk on a small "real live tree," read all of the instructions and disclaimers before you get it out of the store. But bringing a large (3' or more) live tree in and back out in midwinter is a huge risk that may not be worth taking unless, perhaps you have already started with smaller trees. Hope this makes sense; please contact us with any questions or suggestions. And have a great family Christmas Paul Race To return to the About Christmas Trees page, click here. To return to the Family Christmas OnlineTM Home Page, click here.
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