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Article: The thing with the Christmas tree - is it sustainable?

Die Sache mit dem Weihnachtsbaum - geht's auch nachhaltig?
weihnachten

The thing with the Christmas tree - is it sustainable?

Hello! 

 

The decision at the end of the year is slowly approaching : a Christmas tree – yes or no? 

For many, the needle-like greenery is simply part of Christmas. And yet more and more people are deciding against having a Christmas tree. Why? 85 percent of Nordmann firs, blue spruces, etc. are grown in intensive plantation-like cultures, regularly fertilized and treated with pesticides. And then you put them in your living room for the holidays. That's not particularly good for our health and puts a significant strain on soil, water and ecosystems. 

 

So are you also looking for a sustainable alternative? We have some suggestions for you. 

 

  1. Make a Christmas tree out of cardboard. There are numerous instructions for this on the Internet. If using craft scissors and glue sticks is not your strong point, you can also buy cardboard Christmas trees, for example from Room In A Box . 
  2. Simply decorate what you already have for Christmas. Do you tend to a larger houseplant, for example? Then make it the star of this Christmas and decorate it with baubles, fairy lights and whatever else you find in your Christmas box. This is not only sustainable, but also cost-effective. 
  3. If you have a little more budget, it's worth taking a look at the Keinachtsbaum website . This is a plug-in system made of FSC-certified ash wood - you can get the greenery at your local weekly market, for example. The idea behind it: instead of felling up to 30 million Christmas trees every year in Germany alone, only individual branches are removed from the trees. 
  4. If you want a fresh tree – we understand, childhood memories and all that – you can rent one. In Berlin, for example, you can do this via Christmas Forest . After it has served its purpose in the living room, you can either plant the tree yourself in your garden or it can become part of a forest project in Germany. 
  5. Is it not possible to rent where you live, but you still don't want to miss out on a fresh Christmas tree? Then buy as locally as possible and look for organic labels such as Naturland, Bioland and the FSC certificate. 

 

In addition, plastic trees are not a particularly sustainable alternative, even if they are used for years. Their carbon footprint is 40 kg. By comparison, a conventional fir tree that ends up in the trash causes 16 kg of CO 2 . Do you already have a plastic fir tree? Keep it, because the most sustainable Christmas tree is the one you already have. 

Do you have any other great alternative ideas? Share them with us on Instagram!

Happy Christmas decorating 

 

Johanna and Katha 

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