Save A Tree...and Trim A Trimmings

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But suppose you don't want pseudospruce or fake fir? And suppose you don't have any more room to plant a tree in your yard?

Well, don't despair, because we've discovered a way to have a "real" holiday evergreen without cutting it down. We simply make our Christmas tree . . . from prunings!

GETTING IT ALL TOGETHER

Almost anyone should be able to find the raw material for a prunings tree. Just about any type of evergreen will do. We've used pyracantha, holly, juniper, and arborvitae as well as the more familiar (in this application, at least) spruce, pine, and fir. Rural homesteaders will probably be able to simply prune trees in the back forty ... improving their woodlots while they do so. Folks in urban or suburban areas can trim branches from evergreen shrubs ... or even pick up—often free of charge-trimmings from Christmas tree lots.

In order to construct a do-it-yourself tannenbaum, you'll first need to gather [1] a supply of evergreen branches from two to six feet long, [2] a big waterproof "planter" such as a plastic wastebasket or trash can, glazed ceramic pot, or large stoneware crock (don't use an ungalvanized steel container, because it might rust through after weeks of contact with water), [3] wire for fastening branches in place, and [4] enough sand or pea gravel to fill your container threequarters full.

There are probably any number of ways to assemble a batch of limbs into an attractive tree. However, we've found it easiest to first center the tallest branch in the empty container, and then wire the smaller limbs to it—one by one—making sure the cut end of each branch extends down to the bottom of the container (where it can pick up moisture and stay fresh).

It's best to start with the limbs that will form the upper branches of your tree. Begin wiring them to the "trunk" at a point high enough to cause their tips to splay out prettily around the central branch (you might also want to wire these upper limbs to the trunk at regular intervals below the top tie). Then just work your way downward, attaching each consecutive whorl of branches at a point a bit lower on the trunk than the previous—higherlimbs, and allowing their ends to drape out farther to give the festive fir its taper.