Christmas: How To Recycle Your Tree After The Holidays?
The same ritual repeats itself every year: as soon as the holidays are over, it's time to take down the Christmas tree and put away the decorations. For those wondering how to give a second life to a natural Christmas tree, here are 5 tips for recycling your tree after the holidays.
Do not throw it away with the other trash.
If you opted for a natural Christmas tree over an artificial one, you've made the right choice for the planet as it's the more eco-friendly option. After the holiday season, when your tree has lost its luster, you must recycle it.
Starting in early January, one might sometimes come across withered trees left abandoned on the sidewalk. However, be warned: it is strictly forbidden to leave a Christmas tree on the public roadway with other household waste!
If you fail to dispose of this tree properly, you risk a fine for illegal dumping of trash, which can range from €35 to €150.
Bring it to a collection point.
Christmas trees fall into the category of green waste. That's why they cannot be thrown away with regular trash, but must be brought to a waste disposal center or to a dedicated collection point.
More and more municipalities and urban communities are setting up collection points where you can drop off your Christmas tree for recycling. Only flocked trees, that is, those covered with artificial snow, cannot be recycled.
The trees are then shredded on site to reduce transport and turned into mulch or compost intended for use in municipal green spaces. A ton of coniferous trees can produce between 300 and 400 kg of compost.
These trees can also be transformed into firewood instead of simply being incinerated as ordinary waste.
3- Return it to the garden center.
If you purchased your Christmas tree from a garden center, you might simply need to return it to the store with the receipt proving its purchase. Botanic garden centers offer you a 10€ voucher for each tree returned during the month of January.
The natural trees returned by customers after the holidays are turned into compost or recycled as mulch. It's a win-win situation: these green wastes go back to nature, and you get a 10€ voucher valid on any store purchase of 50€ or more until February 29, 2024.
Some Truffaut garden centers also offer a 10€ voucher for every tree brought back after the holidays, so do not hesitate to inquire directly in-store.
Recycle it in your garden.
If you have a garden, you can recycle your Christmas tree at home by shredding it. Once you have shredded the tree or chipped it into mulch, you can use it as mulch at the base of your acid-loving plants.
Like all plant mulches, pine shred helps to limit water evaporation and the growth of weeds on the soil surface. Spread on the ground in January, this mulch also helps to protect plants from the cold during winter.
If you opted for a potted Christmas tree, you can also replant it in your garden. The tree can continue to live and grow, provided it has been well maintained during the holidays, meaning watered and misted.
Note that it is forbidden to burn your Christmas tree in your garden, as with all other green waste.
Avoid burning the Christmas tree in your fireplace.
Even if you have a fireplace or wood stove, avoid using your Christmas tree as firewood. Conifers such as the Nordmann fir and spruce are not recommended for home heating because they tend to clog chimney flues.
However, if you wish to use the fir branches as kindling, wait until the wood is thoroughly dry. Also remember to remove the needles before putting the branches in the fire as pine needles ignite very quickly.
