How to Choose the Perfect Christmas Tree
How to Choose the Perfect Christmas Tree
The time has come to find your home the perfect Christmas tree for the holiday season! What should you look for? Where should you begin?
Here are our top tips for finding the ideal tree to bring into your house to light up your Christmas.
Prepare Your Home for the Tree
Before even going to find a tree, you will want to make sure your home is ready to handle one.
Decide where you want your new Christmas tree to go, and try to choose a spot that isn’t near a heat source, whether that is a fireplace, heating vent, or sunny window. You will also want to avoid high traffic areas where kids or pets may knock it over, or someone has the potential to trip over the light cord coming from it.
Once you have decided where to put the tree, measure out the space so you know exactly what you can afford to place there. You can’t choose your perfect tree without knowing how big or small it needs to be. To make sure you know exactly what the ideal measurements will be, make sure to measure the ceiling height and the width available. Once you have those numbers, write them down and take them with you when finding your tree.
If you are using a tree stand , make sure to measure that as well and factor it into the width and height of the tree. The same goes for the tree topper you have chosen, you don’t want your Christmas tree to be too tall.
When you actually go to get your tree, bring your tape measure and compare it to your room measurements.
Decide What Type of Tree You Want
There are many, many different evergreens to choose from when comparing different Christmas tree options. Here are some of our favorites:
A Douglas Fir offers you a gorgeous, full, dark green to blue color. The needles are soft and hold well to the branches, and will keep your home smelling amazing the whole Christmas season. If you want an even stronger scent, crush up some of the needles.
A Leyland Cypress tree (Cupressus x leylandii), is extremely popular in the southeastern United States. This tree has soft gray-green needles with little scent, no pollen, and no sap. It is ideal for those of you who suffer from allergies. The tree holds on to its needles fairly well, but you may notice a few falling off over time.
Last but not least, we love the Scotch pine (Pinus sylvestris). This tree is one of the most popular to use around Christmas time. The branches are very stiff, giving the tree a beautiful shape, and they offer bright green needles that stick out about an inch. Even when it begins to dry out, you won’t have any issues with the needles falling off. The Scotch pine also has an incredible, long-lasting smell.
Check Out the Space Between the Branches
Your tree is going to look best when the ornaments are straight when they hang off the branches. A lot of the trees you come across are going to be groomed to be full and lush, so this may make anything dangling on them slant down slightly.
If you go with a tree with some space between its branches, the ornaments will hang straight. You can test this out by bringing an ornament with you to hang on the branches of potential trees.
Make Sure the Tree is Fresh
It is vitally important that your tree is fresh, otherwise you will see it drying out much more quickly than it should.
How can you tell if your tree is fresh? You should see needles that are green, shiny, and vibrant. If you pull on a branch they should not fall right off.
Be Careful When Transporting the Tree
When transporting your tree from the outdoors to your home, be as careful as possible.
If you can, lay the tree inside your car or trunk while driving it to your house. However, if you don’t have a big van or truck, you can also strap it to the roof of your car. Just make sure that you have tied it on securely and wrap it up in an old blanket or tarp first.
Measure and Cut Accordingly
If you are slightly off on your measurements, don’t worry about it! For those of you that find out you have a little extra length in your tree than you bargained for, simply measure and cut off the excess trunk to make up for it.
Enjoy Your Beautiful Christmas Tree
Last but certainly not least, be sure to wholeheartedly enjoy your new Christmas tree and the holiday season. Once the tree is securely placed into the tree stand or just into your living room, you are ready to start decorating and enjoying the nature you have brought into your home!
