TRANSPORT

For those who covet fir over fake, keeping a Christmas tree fresh and perky until December 25 can be an arduous task. Tree care starts from selecting the tree and incorporates everything from transport, location in the home and, of course, proper nutrition.

Here’s how to make sure it survives the silly season.

SELECTION

Giving your tree the best possible chance of staying green until Christmas day starts at the selection process. The best option is to go to a Christmas tree farm and pick and cut one yourself. But, if a ready-cut tree is your only option there are a couple of things you should check before you purchase. Firstly, make sure the cut tree is in water. Secondly, ask how long ago it was cut. Sharon Campbell from Fresh n Bushy Christmas Trees in Wellington says trees should last about six weeks, so make your calculations before you buy. Once you’ve got your tree, make sure it gets home in one piece. Wrap it up in tarpaulin or plastic wrap and get it home as fast as possible. It’s not going to be happy if it’s left in a hot car for a couple of hours.

Campbell says there is about a 30-minute time frame from when a tree is cut to when it needs to be put in water again.

KEEP IT HYDRATED

Like all plants, water is the key to keeping your tree alive. Campbell says, when a tree is first cut it will drink up to six litres in the first 24 hours. “The more it has to drink, the better.”

The average 2 metre tree will drink up to two to four litres of water a day, but this amount will reduce over time.

Trees take water in through their cambium layer (the soft outer layer that lies just beneath the bark). Once this dries up it’s much harder for the tree to