Choosing between real and artificial Christmas trees largely comes down to personal preference: do you want that cosy pine smell and hellacious clean-up, or built-in lights with no personal touch but nary a needle on the floor? Personal preference aside, though, there's someone else who probably cares: Mother Earth.
It's that time of year again. The air is warm, it's still bright at 7PM, and for those that celebrate, it is time to get a Christmas tree. Whether you believe that Santa is coming down the chimney; a Soviet era Grandfather Frost and his trusty chaperon, the Snow Maiden, are coming to visit your non-denominational "New Year's tree"; or that the Bishop of Turkey is going to swing by for a little eggnog, you are going to want that tree smelling and looking good all month. Here's how to keep those needles hydrated through Krampus Night and into Christmas Day.
Full Christmas trees look great, but they can be a pain when it comes to watering them.
Last year my household chose our Christmas tree badly and ended up with a tree that died within two weeks, a mildly depressing turn of events. I'm too alert to metaphors to be joyful about opening an excessive number of consumer goods under a drooping, desiccated husk dropping needles on wrapping paper made of... dead trees. It's enough to make a person consider getting a fake tree.
