Tips on Preserving Your Christmas Tree

I love Christmas! But only BEFORE Christmas...Once December 26th comes - everything is packed away again! So in order for me to fully enjoy the season, I have to purchase my Christmas tree the day after Thanksgiving. Every year, without fail. Having done this for so long now, and having more than one tree to turn highly flammable tinder before Christmas, I have learned the best way to keep your Christmas tree from going brown before the 'big' day!

First, buy as fresh a tree as possible! Either at the place where you buy it, or at home (maybe even both!), give the tree a fresh cut from its trunk. Then, place it in a tub of water until you can get it in the stand.

When selecting where to place your Christmas tree, place it as far away from any heat sources as possible! If the ONLY place is by a heating vent, I urge you to cover the vent with a couple of layers of duct tape until after you take your tree down! Once in the stand and level- and as far away from heating vents as possible- add your water. Here's the trick to keeping your Christmas tree fresh - add 2tbsp of regular bleach, and one and a half cups of sprite or lemon lime soda to a gallon of water! Then make sure you water your tree EVERY DAY! With some trees, like mine this year, it needs to be watered twice a day!

The bleach WILL evaporate, so while you do not need to add the soda every day to your gallon of water ( assuming your tree stand holds less than a gallon, or is not taking the full gallon) you DO need to add new bleach every day. My tree uses slightly less than a gallon a day, so I just mix a fresh batch every other day.

Here's why it works: the lemon lime soda acts as a food for the tree. The bleach prevents bad bacteria from forming, and keeping it well watered keeps sap from sealing the bottom of the trunk and preventing it from drinking the water!

Your tree will still loose needles- there is no way to prevent it, its just what they do...but following these tips to keep your Christmas tree healthy will help prevent it from drying out prematurely.