The early buyer gets the best Christmas tree, any child and specially your own children will tell you. They are right. To get to enjoy your dream Christmas tree, you need more than just cash to buy it. If you know how to look after your Christmas tree, it will stay fresh well into January. We are able to present to you the findings of the University of Dresden, debunking some guesses and myths on the way. Students at the German university did an in-depth study to research Christmas tree lore.
It is probably fitting that a German university did the research vital for the survival of your Christmas tree. Students took a close and scientific look into various claims as to what keeps a Christmas tree fresh and green over a long period of time. Taking the results of the study and adding the suggestions made by the association of German Christmas tree dealers, you will be able to keep your Christmas tree green and happy until January.
Christmas trees you find in shops and markets anywhere have done quite some travelling to get to your home town. The time lapse starting with felling a tree, transporting it to its destination, and displaying it for sale is several days at least. The whole time, the tree is left without water albeit out in the cold weather permitting. Then, when you buy it, the transport to your home is possibly done on the roof of a van or a car. This form of transport exposes the tree to headwind which dries the tree to a considerable extent if you don’t get it wrapped properly beforehand.
Buying a Christmas tree early doesn’t necessarily mean putting it up early, too, though that may depend on how insistent your children are about it. A cut tree is best kept outside in the cold in a bucket filled with water. The Christmas tree doesn’t mind being kept tied in its netting for a long period of time. Before leaving outside, you should re-cut the bottom of the trunk and take off about four inches of bark to help it get water into its system.
Before rushing your Christmas tree inside, take a moment to plan ahead. The chosen place should be away from open fire, and keeping the Christmas tree away from radiators helps keeping it fresh. If you want to use real candles in your decoration, spread cellophane or packing paper on the floor to avoid wax stains on your carpet. You should also be careful when placing the candles on your Christmas tree. Put them in places where they won’t burn the branches above or you’ll end up with a bonfire. After taking it from its netting, you should allow your Christmas tree 24 hours to stretch out before starting to decorate it.
Use a tree stand that can be filled with water, and preferably lots of water. The researchers at the Dresden University have taken detailed measurements on the water use of conifers in heated environment. The results may shock you. When a small Christmas tree is transferred from the cold into a heated apartment, it needs 1.5 litres of water a day for the first three days. After that, it needs 0.5 litres every day. And the measurements were made on small trees of about 4 feet. Larger ones need more.
The study also took a close look at some popular myths about what you should add to the water in your Christmas tree stand. It is often advised that you should add dish washing liquid or sugar to the water to prolong the trees life. Results showed: The addition of dish washing liquid to the water of some trees got no improved results when compared to trees kept in plain water. The addition of sugar, on the other hand, did make a noticeable difference in keeping the trees fresher. German Christmas tree dealers recommend adding three table spoons of sugar to one litre of water.
The recommendations of keeping your Christmas tree dry out of water, adding salt to the water, keeping it in wet sand, or spraying it with water were also tested at length. The results were a disaster. The poor Christmas trees treated in such a way were dying and losing their needles long before the trees kept in plain water. Don’t do it!
Other places to go to
The First Christmas Trees in History
It is probably fitting that a German university did the research vital for the survival of your Christmas tree. Students took a close and scientific look into various claims as to what keeps a Christmas tree fresh and green over a long period of time. Taking the results of the study and adding the suggestions made by the association of German Christmas tree dealers, you will be able to keep your Christmas tree green and happy until January.
Christmas trees you find in shops and markets anywhere have done quite some travelling to get to your home town. The time lapse starting with felling a tree, transporting it to its destination, and displaying it for sale is several days at least. The whole time, the tree is left without water albeit out in the cold weather permitting. Then, when you buy it, the transport to your home is possibly done on the roof of a van or a car. This form of transport exposes the tree to headwind which dries the tree to a considerable extent if you don’t get it wrapped properly beforehand.
Buying a Christmas tree early doesn’t necessarily mean putting it up early, too, though that may depend on how insistent your children are about it. A cut tree is best kept outside in the cold in a bucket filled with water. The Christmas tree doesn’t mind being kept tied in its netting for a long period of time. Before leaving outside, you should re-cut the bottom of the trunk and take off about four inches of bark to help it get water into its system.
Before rushing your Christmas tree inside, take a moment to plan ahead. The chosen place should be away from open fire, and keeping the Christmas tree away from radiators helps keeping it fresh. If you want to use real candles in your decoration, spread cellophane or packing paper on the floor to avoid wax stains on your carpet. You should also be careful when placing the candles on your Christmas tree. Put them in places where they won’t burn the branches above or you’ll end up with a bonfire. After taking it from its netting, you should allow your Christmas tree 24 hours to stretch out before starting to decorate it.
Use a tree stand that can be filled with water, and preferably lots of water. The researchers at the Dresden University have taken detailed measurements on the water use of conifers in heated environment. The results may shock you. When a small Christmas tree is transferred from the cold into a heated apartment, it needs 1.5 litres of water a day for the first three days. After that, it needs 0.5 litres every day. And the measurements were made on small trees of about 4 feet. Larger ones need more.
The study also took a close look at some popular myths about what you should add to the water in your Christmas tree stand. It is often advised that you should add dish washing liquid or sugar to the water to prolong the trees life. Results showed: The addition of dish washing liquid to the water of some trees got no improved results when compared to trees kept in plain water. The addition of sugar, on the other hand, did make a noticeable difference in keeping the trees fresher. German Christmas tree dealers recommend adding three table spoons of sugar to one litre of water.
The recommendations of keeping your Christmas tree dry out of water, adding salt to the water, keeping it in wet sand, or spraying it with water were also tested at length. The results were a disaster. The poor Christmas trees treated in such a way were dying and losing their needles long before the trees kept in plain water. Don’t do it!
Other places to go to
The First Christmas Trees in History
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