The Garden of Eaden: HOW TO CHOOSE A CHRISTMAS TREE

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Driving off to your preferred Xmas tree retailer and choosing the family Christmas tree is right up there as one of the years great family events. However, try not to look at this pseudo 'Right of Passage' event through rose tinted glasses as - in my experience of selling these horrid creatures - every other sale will involve some kind of a dispute within the family. The truth is that most people have no idea as to what they are buying, yet the dominant male in the family group will always try and take on the role of 'Xmas tree expert'. Sometimes it appears as though God himself has anointed the man with an 'all knowing power' enabling him to choose the very best out of the thousands of tree in stock. Occasionally you will come across a dominant male who will actively insist in seeing every single tree in his price range before a decision is made. Be aware that this scene can ONLY be prevented from playing out to the very end if he is accompanied by a woman!

So, how do you choose the very best Christmas tree?

Well, your two biggest concerns should be damage and freshness. If the Xmas trees are still wrapped up in their protective netting then make sure that you ask an assistant to remove the netting so that you can see the tree in its entirety. That way you haven't just driven all the way home with a tree that has a broken or damaged leader. Secondly, ask the assistant to lift the tree and bang the bottom of the trunk on the ground. This will help the branches to open up allowing the tree to reveal its shape. Also, if you see a torrent of needles fall to the ground, you will have a good indication that the tree is not as fresh as perhaps it ought to be. Don't forget to ask the assistant to fit a new net over your chosen Christmas tree otherwise you can almost guarantee damaging it when you try to get it home.

Tree freshness

If you are buying your Xmas tree through a retailer rather than direct from a Xmas tree farm then freshness will be more of an issue. This is because as soon as a Xmas tree has been cut (presuming that you are buying a cut Xmas tree) it will only be able to hold on to its needles as long as it has sufficient moisture inside it. Unfortunately, as trees are living breathing things they are going to be continuously loosing water through their needles as part of their normal metabolism. In order to reduce needle loss once you have your tree back at home, ask the assistant to make a fresh cut at the base of the trunk before you leave the store and then - once home - provide a Xmas tree stand that is able to hold a reservoir of water. Don't forget to refill the reservoir with water when it runs out!

This bit is important. If you want a tree that has that lovely Christmas pine smell the you will only get this from a tree that is releasing the smell as it dries out. In that case choose the traditional Xmas tree known as the Norway spruce or Picea abies. If you are not worried about the smell and want the tree to hold on to its needles for as long as possible then choose a 'needle fast or non-drop' variety of Christmas tree such as the Scots pine, Frazer fir, Abies nordmanniana etc

Please be aware that in order for the Xmas tree suppliers to successfully full fill the orders placed by the retailers, they begin cutting at the end of November and tend to finish by the first week of December. So your tree chosen tree could have been drying out for up to 4 weeks before you buy it. Therefore, if you have bought a tree that has been bound up and sitting around for a couple of weeks, by the time Christmas day has arrived it could be a bare as Mother Hubbards cupboard! This problem of drying out can be made worse if the weather is unseasonably warm, and if you are displaying your tree next to a working radiatior!

FACT. Don't forget that once your tree is at home and it is stood there all by itself without any others to compare with - they all end up looking pretty much the same. More so, it it is hidden by decorations and after the second day no-one will bother looking at it much anyway.

So my top tips for buying a Christmas tree is this:

1. Choose a fresh one.
2. Choose an even one
3. Check the height of your ceiling so that you know for sure that the height of the tree + height of your Christmas tree stand + your fairy on the top of it will comfortably fit in your proposed room.
4. Same goes for the width. Check the size of the area that you are going to be positioning your tree so that it will fit.
5. Don't be afraid to cut bits of your tree to make it fit or look more appealing.
6. If your tree is going into the corner of the room you can remove as much of the back of the tree as you like as you won't see it

If I have missed out anything then leave a note in the comments. Merry Xmas and good hunting.

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