Editor’s note: Editorial Page editor Megan Schrader takes a side in the “real vs. fake” Christmas tree debate. Look for the counterpoint by Features coordinator Barbara Ellis here.
If you’ve tried to buy a fresh Christmas tree since 2020, the sticker shock probably drove you to check out the plastic trees listed for half the price and promised to last for decades. They want how much for a 5-foot Douglas Fir that you will throw away in just a few weeks?
But, don’t give in just because an artificial tree promises perfect symmetry, low maintenance, no mess, and pre-strung lights.
In Colorado, we are blessed that for less than $50, you can get a soaring evergreen that will fill your home with pine the entire holiday season, no matter how you celebrate.
Related: Colorado’s national forests open for Christmas tree cutting — with strict rules
All that is required is that you are open to the reality that your tree will be a cross between the sad specimen in “A Charlie Brown Christmas” and the family crisis from a “National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation.”
For several years now, my family either gets free permits from Denver Mountain Parks or $20 permits from the National Forest Service to cut down a fresh tree near Evergreen or Fraser.
Snowshoes are optional in these locations – although they certainly make it easier during snow years. We can search far and wide for the perfect tree or chop down the first tree we see after one of the kids issues the first complaint of the morning. We use a small hand saw that we purchased for cutting tree branches in the back yard, and the tree fits on top of our Subaru Outback with just a few ropes.
We bring a thermos of hot cocoa and a sled for celebrating after we find the “perfect” tree.
Certainly, what I’m proposing is extra work. Our group of friends and family has had twisted ankles and sledding mishaps. Sometimes it feels more chore than joy packing up everything for the day trip to the mountains. But once we leave the parking lot, I remember why we keep signing up every year. The sun will filter through the trees and make the snow sparkle. My kids will laugh and throw snow. And for minimal effort, I start Christmas with a simple family trip that reminds me to be grateful for the abundance and beauty in this world.
Freshly cut Colorado Christmas trees can also be a responsible decision in this world of over-consumption. These trees are being cut from areas that forestry experts have deemed in need of thinning for health or fire-protection reasons. We do our best to select a young tree growing in a dense clump, and I feel less guilty knowing that the tree next door will thrive without the competition for sunlight, water and nutrients.
And after the holidays, the tree makes it full circle in our home: We drop it off with the city of Denver’s tree recycling program, and in the spring, we collect a free trunk-load of mulch from the city to use in our yard.
Which is the perfect segue into the best part of getting a fresh tree while living in a small house in Denver: no storage necessary.
While I understand the lure of an artificial tree, nothing can beat the sentimental attachment I feel for the scraggly little piece of nature that we stuff into a corner of our living room. And as long as we remember to water it — frequently — the beauty will last from early December until the New Year.