In 2020, Clare and I got our first live Christmas tree. We were living in Virginia at the time, and we showed up to a farm that had many trees planted in rows. They gave us a bow saw, and it was up to us to chop one down and bring it home.

I enjoyed having a live tree in my apartment. I still remember the smell of fresh conifer. After several weeks, the holidays pass and the needles start falling to the ground. I don’t quite remember how we got rid of this tree, but I wouldn’t be surprised if we just threw it in our dumpster.

We later moved to New York. For the next few years, we would travel to see friends and family during the holidays. I used that as an excuse to not have a tree setup at home. Eventually Clare convinces me that we should still be festive at home, and we bought a plastic tree.

Around us in upstate New York, there are several bonfire events in January. There’s one in particular that we’ve attended for several New Year’s Eve. What’s special about this bonfire is that the fuel of the fire is not prepared as chopped wood in advance. Instead, it is sourced from the community.

Let me paint a picture. It’s a cold winter night, and there is a group of around 20-30 people bundled up in full winter gear staying close to the bonfire. As time progresses, the fire gets smaller and smaller, and we get closer to try to feel some of its heat. Then, a person in a pickup truck arrives, gets out of their vehicle, and chucks their Christmas tree from the bed of the truck onto the fire. The fire rages.

Now I find this very cool, but some trees have different fates. Ton writes on his blog that they have the same tree every year. Instead of sawing their tree down, the tree gets delivered to their place with the root ball intact. Once the holidays are over, the growers come back and pick it up.

Through an email exchange, I learn that this is a national service over in the Netherlands. Now that’s pretty cool.