Moving On……

The holidays are officially over. We finally took down the last of the decorations in our office. I still see a few icicle lights hanging across the street from our building, but mostly the silver and gold is gone.  My 3 year old nephew is very sad when the blow-up lawn ornaments in his neighborhood deflate. He worries that they die.  His mom is trying to convince him they are just sleeping/hibernating like the bears. Sometimes it’s hard to let go.

If you’ve finally come to terms with the end of the season, the year and the holiday cheer, but still haven’t recycled your Christmas tree you can still do so.  If you go to Colorado Recycles you will find a statewide, county by county information base for recycling your tree. What did we do before the Internet?

There are other  options to consider. Some areas offer curbside pickup. There may be some restrictions on size and whether or not the tree is flocked. All ornaments must be removed. Some non-profits offer a pickup service. The boy scouts pick up trees in some states. They usually ask for a nominal donation. If you do take a tree to a recycling center most places will take up to two, so help out a neighbor or older person who might not be able to do it on their own.

If none of these solutions work, and you don’t have a handy wood chipper in the garage, cut the tree into workable pieces and put it in with your yard waste. Or turn it into a bird feeder and sanctuary. Put it in the backyard with some popcorn and fresh orange slices and the birds will flock to it. Make sure that all decorations and tinsel are removed. Eventually the tree will become so dry and brittle you can break it up by hand.

Remember that you should never burn your tree in the fireplace or wood stove. Pines, firs and other evergreens have a high content of flammable turpentine oils. Burning the tree may add to the creosote buildup in the chimney greatly increasing the risk of a chimney fire.

Lastly be responsible. Don’t dump your tree on the roadside, your neighbors yard, open space or any other place you think of. Last weekend I was heading home and I saw a man coming from Sterling Court dragging a tree. He crossed Valmont, tossed the tree over the railing by the ditch at the corner of Kings Ridge and Valmont and then turned and walked away. I can’t imagine what he was thinking!