Recycling Christmas Trees

by woofboy111

19K729

Intro: Recycling Christmas Trees

In this Instructable, I will show how I recycled my Christmas tree. Throwing out Christmas trees after the holidays were over always bothered me, and I always thought there should be some other use for the dead trees. A few years back I heard of an organization that takes Christmas trees and builds sand dunes at beaches with them to stop beach erosion. I couldn't find them on the internet, so I did the next best thing. I turned the tree into firewood...

STEP 1: Trim the Tree...

Start out by taking the tree outside or somewhere that you don't mind getting pine needles everywhere. Then take a garden cutting apparatus of your choice and start trimming off all of the trees branches. I used a lopper. Start cutting at the bottom of the tree where the branches are the densest and work your way to the top. Try to cut as close to the trunk as possible.

Once you have the branches off the tree, it's time to move on to the next step.

STEP 2: Saw Into Logs

Once you have all of the branches off of the tree, the next step is to cut the bare tree trunk into logs that can fit into a fireplace. I used a handsaw to cut the trunk into logs about 1.5 feet long.

STEP 3: Burn the Wood

Once the Christmas tree trunk is cut up, all that is left is to burn the logs as firewood. Be careful playing with fire!!!

25 Comments

TortillaTortilla 3 years ago

Since there's some usable wood in there you could probably whittle some objects out of it or use the wood in wood scrap projects. There are also a couple Pagan book-sourced tips for using these. One is to chop up the tree and use a small section to light next year's Yule log, and burn the rest if you've got a wood stove or firepit. Or heck actually use the trunk sections AS a candle holding Yule log by drilling three candle-holding bits into it and flattening the base then decorating it. Another is to use the foliage in potpourri, sachets, and so on. Another is to pound sections of the main trunk into a general circle in the ground outside for rituals and so on. Some people even make tea out of the needles. If all else fails just put it on the curb, list it on Craigslist as free for the taking, and watch it disappear!

elypter 2 years ago

i would highly advise against consuming any part of a chrismas tree. they are usually treated with all sorts of chemicals.

elypter 2 years ago

if you have enough of them you could make a roundwood compost out of it. cut 2 notches in the dick side. put the thin side of the next one in the notch at a 90° angle. 4 for each layer. repeat until you reach your preferred hight. you can weave in the branches if there are gaps.

surfon6 15 years ago

We're fortunate enough in Toronto to have them composted by the city. Sconniebabe was criticizing having a real tree if we were trying to go green and I've asked myself the question. I came to the conclusion that it's either that or nothing (which I'm sorry to say I'm not yet green enough to forgo the Christmas tree...maybe an instructable one day). The artificial ones are made out of plastic and like it or not, it will eventually end up in the land fill and take generations to deconstruct.

DocTao 14 years ago

Hey Surfon, yes Artificial trees can and do end up in the refuse cycle,
this is where the environmental aspect, and thinking come to the forefront.
Think recycle,think reuse, think about what other alternatives are available.
Artificial trees don't have to end up in the refuse pile. Plastic and steel and aluminum can all be reclaimed, it takes a bit of initiative here. Recycling
at first is a real pain in the butt but after the simple impetus is put into
motion becomes a much simpler, almost every moment thought. We as
a species need to get away from the Buy and Trash, let's consume it!
and not replace it state of mind.    I have done research over the years,
you might say I got a Pine needle up the butt over it, but my research has
shown that an artificial tree used for 10-20 years prolongs the life of a
wild tree time 10 t0 20 times. Multiply that by the trees not cut out of the
"wild" amounts to a lot of " Lungs" that help us, the world, breathe a bit
easier.       Merry Christmas!!

Tecknojock 14 years ago

Well, except that the typical christmas tree is cultivated for this specific purpose, so if we suddenly no longer desired live christmas trees, there would be no profit motive in growing them in those tree farms, so those trees would get replaced with something to produce a prophit and thus they would not live 10 to 20 times longer, but rather never get planted in the first place.

DocTao 14 years ago

the Tree is great for mulching and composting. Large Branches and Trunks
are good for fires indoors or out, pine smoke just as all other wood combustibles have chemical tars entrained within, although pine is
extremely high in pitch and naturally converted by heat creosote compounds
which can cause chimmney  fires.   Strip the greenery off the branches
use as mulch and the flexible branches can be woven into natural baskets
for planting in outdoors.

peterfoote 15 years ago

One thing I've done to recycle my old tree is to cut it into sections between the branches. Using the branch as a handle, you can carve out the trunk into a dipper. They're handy for getting water up to my hanging baskets.

Number5Alive 15 years ago

How about all the limbs? Still quite a bit of mass going into the landfill? And as some have posted, you don't want pine smoke in your chim-chimney

kagera 15 years ago

I was going to say the same thing. OK for fire pits and camp fires, but dont burn inside.

leebryuk 16 years ago

My neighbor collects them and throws them in the lake behind his house. They evidently provide a good habitat for different fish. It's pretty funny when the droughts come, as he'll have 10 to 15 trees laying on his beach waiting for the rains.

sconniebabe 16 years ago

so... who's willing to stand outside in Wisconsin, in January. Hacking you Christmas tree apart. to save the planet. if you're concerned about the planet, what are you doing having a real tree?

jim09091 15 years ago

True, but I would have no problem standing out in January cutting mine. Then again it is usually somewhere between 70-80 during the day that time of year. I don't think this will "save the planet" but its better than the landfill (at least in communities that still send their trees to the landfill).

Dfole 15 years ago

But don't burn in your fire place. Soft wood like pine releases a substance that accumulates in your fireplace and can be very flammable.

baudeagle 16 years ago

Why not put your Christmas tree outside next to your bird feeder for a month or two? The birds just love this as they feel secure and protected while feeding. After the birds are done with it then hack it up.

whiteoakart 15 years ago

baudeagle, we do this, too, with an additional feature. My kids make ornaments for the birds. They cut out cardboard star-shapes from old boxes and coat them with peanut butter and bird seed. Then we hang them with twine on the branches.

rocotillo 16 years ago

if you live near stoke poges(UK) bring your christmas trees to the memorial gardens and see me put it through a shredder and use it as compost.we do this each year.
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