Hundreds of green beauties appeared at the Christmas tree markets of Podolsk. No matter how huge and varied the choice of artificial Christmas trees is, many residents of the district are sure that nothing can replace the unique aroma of pine needles. In order for an elegant Christmas tree to come not only for the holiday, but to delight you for many weeks to come, you need to properly care for it. The RIAMO in Podolsk columnist learned several secrets that will help the tree stay fresh for a long time.
Choosing a tree
There are many signs by which you can determine the highest quality tree. For example, choose a tree with a trunk, the cut of which does not have a wide dark border, and the branches are elastic and bright, the needles are rich green and do not fall off. When transporting, it is important not to damage the crown and tips of the branches.
The most environmentally friendly option is to buy not a cut down tree, but a truly living spruce in a tub. When holidays run out, place it on a glassed-in balcony; in winter the tree should sleep cool. In spring, the spruce can be planted in the garden by choosing a dark place. You can replace the Christmas tree with more heat-loving trees, for example, cypress or araucaria, but in wildlife You can’t bring them back in our climate. If there is no opportunity to plant a tree, in the Moscow region there have long been services offering a tree in a tub “for rent”. After the holidays, the Christmas tree will be taken back to the nursery.
Adjusting the temperature
GIF: GIPHY website
You need to choose the optimal time to buy spruce. If you buy it long before the holiday, there will be more choice, but in order to preserve its beauty, the tree will first have to be kept in the cold, for example, on a loggia, wrapped in paper. If you take a Christmas tree just before the holiday, it is better not to bring it into the warmth right away. A spruce tree can quickly die from sudden temperature fluctuations. First you need to hold the tree in the entrance for 15-20 minutes, and only then bring it into the apartment.
Choosing a place
GIF: GIPHY website
It is better to install spruce away from heating devices and radiators in a well-ventilated area, as hot, dry air will shorten the life of the tree. You should also not place the tree in the passage, so as not to touch the branches again.
Preparing the barrel
Before installing the spruce tree, the trunk needs to be prepared. To begin with, you should use a sharp knife to remove the bark by about 8-10 centimeters, updating the cut area. When installing, remove the lower branches; they are perfect for a New Year's wreath or bouquet. Those who are going to use only the top of the tree can lubricate the cut area with Vishnevsky ointment.
Choosing a substrate
GIF: GIPHY website
One of the proven methods for preserving spruce is a substrate of wet sand, which is usually prepared in a bucket. Add two tablespoons of gelatin to a liter of clean water, stir thoroughly, then pour into sand. A solution of two tablespoons of sugar and two tablets will also help prevent table rot. acetylsalicylic acid. The solution must be poured into a prepared container with water or sand. The most famous recipe for “living water” is a few cubes of refined sugar, an aspirin tablet and a handful of salt. The tree trunk is buried 15-20 centimeters in the sand. The substrate must be moistened regularly, approximately once every two days.
A container of warm water has also worked well, into which you need to add a little citric or acetic acid to create an acidic environment. The same effect can be achieved with instant aspirin tablets. In order for the spruce to stand, you will need a tripod, which is placed in a container of water. You can give the tree stability by removing some of the lower branches with pruning shears.
To extend the life of a spruce tree on a cross stand, you can wrap the trunk in wet woolen fabric, for example, an old sweater. The coat should be moisturized regularly.
The branches of the tree also need to be periodically watered with water from a spray bottle, and, of course, you should turn off all the electric garlands in advance. To avoid damaging the toys, it is better to moisten the branches closer to the trunk, where there are no decorations.
A live Christmas tree fills the house with the smell of pine needles, and with it festive mood. However, it has one big drawback - the needles begin to fall off just a few days after the New Year. It is possible to preserve the appearance of a forest beauty and extend the time of her stay in a city apartment if you follow some recommendations.
When choosing a tree at the Christmas tree market, ask the seller to provide documents indicating the date of felling. If they are not there, carefully inspect the product from all sides. If necessary, come closer to the tree, ask to turn it the other way, etc.
The quality of spruce can be judged by the following characteristics:
Usually people buy a Christmas tree for the holiday because it is the most affordable, popular and familiar New Year tree. Its fresh forest aroma cannot be confused with anything else. It reminds of childhood, is found in old Soviet films, decorates New Year cards. However, the classic Russian spruce stays in the house for no longer than 2 weeks from the moment of installation, losing more and more needles every day.
Fir (Danish Christmas tree) is better known in Europe and America. She is a traditional symbol Catholic Christmas, family gatherings and home comfort. Small children really like the New Year's tree because its needles do not prick. Thanks to its regular pyramidal shape, fir looks very aesthetically pleasing. In addition, it practically does not shed its needles, but only gradually turns yellow. The aroma of the Danish spruce is much less pronounced than the aroma of Russian spruce. At good care The fir will delight you with its appearance for up to 3 weeks.
From installation New Year's tree depends on how long it will retain its decorative properties. The first thing to do is to allow the forest beauty to recover after transportation. Do not bring the spruce home right away. Keep it for some time in a cold room: garage, shed, glassed-in balcony.
Select for tree best place. Do not place it near sources of heating or open fire. This precaution is necessary not only for the sake of preventing fire, but also for the sake of maintaining a presentable appearance Christmas trees It would be good if there was an electrical outlet nearby to connect a multi-colored garland. If not, use an extension cord.
Wooden or plastic crosses for installing a live Christmas tree are a relic of the past. If you want to keep the tree fresh longer, buy a special stand that has a reservoir for water or sand. As a last resort, a deep metal or plastic bucket will do.
Installation steps:
Cover the reservoir with filler and the lower part of the barrel with paper, cotton wool, tinsel or other decorative elements. Do this so that you have access to a stand or bucket for watering.
The Christmas tree requires care throughout the entire period of its stay in the apartment, and proper installation is only the first part of it. The tree should not lack moisture. Water the tree regularly or add water to the container. Be sure to monitor the humidity level in the apartment: dry air has a detrimental effect on needles. It's good if you have a humidifier in your house. If it is not there, spray the spruce paws with a spray bottle every evening.
Before installation, refresh the cut, and after installation, nourish the plant with special homemade solutions.
Living trees receive the necessary substances for growth and development from the soil. A felled tree also needs nutrition. Compensate for the lack of roots by updating the cut - this way the area of the absorbent layer will be larger. To do this, free the lower part of the trunk from the bark and shorten it by 2-3 cm at an angle of 45°. Immediately immerse the fresh cut in water or damp sand.
Do-it-yourself fertilizers will help prolong the life of the New Year's tree and save it from pest attacks.
The simplest recipe for making “food” for the Christmas tree is to mix hot water and vinegar. For 1 liter of boiling water, take 50 ml of table vinegar. The product will serve as a natural preservative and also protect the bark from insects.
The second version of the homemade fertilizer recipe is intended to replenish the tree’s nutritional reserves and prevent trunk rot. Dilute in cold water 2 tablespoons of sugar and 1 aspirin tablet. Place the spruce in the liquid or pour the mixture over the sand.
For preparing universal and effective nutrient dilute 2 teaspoons of ammonium nitrate, 1 teaspoon of superphosphate and ½ teaspoon of potassium nitrate in 10 liters of warm water. Add 1 tablespoon of the mixture daily to the container with the installed tree.
If you don’t want to make your own fertilizers for conifers, you can purchase a ready-made solution. It has not only a balanced composition of essential nutrients, but also a rich spruce aroma due to the content of natural essential oils.
Freshly cut spruce will last in the apartment from 7 to 14 days. This period varies depending on several circumstances: location, watering regime, temperature and humidity in the house. On the eve of the Old New Year, even with proper care, the needles will begin to fall off - by this time the tree has completely used up its vital resources.
It is recommended to take natural spruce to special collection points for further processing, where it will be turned into fertilizer or sawdust for the boiler room. A used Christmas tree can be taken to a zoo, where its needles will become food or bedding for animals. Summer residents use fallen needles as mulch for the soil, and adherents of traditional medicine make medicinal decoctions from them.
Of course, you can take a dried tree to a trash container, from where it will be sent to a landfill. However, this is not best solution, because there are no city landfills suitable conditions for natural decomposition of wood.
An alternative to a live Christmas tree can be compositions made from spruce branches. They also need proper care so that the needles do not fall off prematurely.
The easiest way is to stick spruce branches into piaflor - a special phytosponge that can be bought at flower shops. This way the coniferous bouquet will stay fresh and fragrant for up to 10 days. However, for greater stability, it is better to keep massive spruce paws in a pot filled with well-washed river sand.
Before installing the elements of the New Year's composition, trim them a little from the bottom. The cuts will be filled with resin, and the plant will use less water. You can feed coniferous branches with the same nutrient mixtures as live Christmas trees. Keep natural decor away from heating appliances and spray it with water every day.
A Christmas tree made of plastic or paper does not cause any trouble to its owner. The only point that brings some inconvenience is storing the artificial spruce. Even when folded, it takes up a lot of space.
If the tree has a collapsible structure, start dismantling it from the top and gradually move down. Press each section of the tree tightly against the trunk so that everything can be placed in one box. The easiest way to pack a tree is to wrap it tightly in cling film. You can store such a Christmas tree anywhere.
If you have an artificial tree with removable branches, when dismantling it, sort all the elements by size. Tie identical parts of the tree with rope or wrap them with film so that they can be easily found later.
Carefully place all parts of the disassembled tree into a cardboard box or large bag. Lay the trunk and stand down, and place the branches on top. It is important that the storage container is completely closed. This will prevent dust and insects from entering. If the tree is made of paper, it is better to keep it in a plastic container so that it does not spoil.
Synthetic wood should be stored away from sunlight at a temperature of +5...+35 °C. Christmas trees with a coating that imitates snow are especially sensitive to sudden changes in temperature and humidity. Therefore, it is better to keep them in a dry room where a constant temperature is maintained all year round: in a pantry, on mezzanines, in a utility room.
Discussion 0
Similar materials
Useful tips
Only a live spruce can bring a long-awaited, incomparable aroma and a wonderful New Year's mood to your home.
If you decide to buy a natural Christmas tree for the New Year, then we have prepared some tips for you on how you can preserve it for a longer period so that it exudes aroma during all New Year's holidays and even after them.
As a rule, you can find spruce, pine or fir at Christmas tree markets. All these trees differ from each other both in smell and appearance, and in their lifespan after felling.
There are several general rules when choosing a tree. For example, the trunk must have needles, even sparse ones, and the cut tree must not have a tight border. You will learn about these and other tips for choosing and storing a New Year's tree here.
1. Bend the Christmas tree branch slightly. If it bends easily, but cracks, the wood inside is already dry. This means that very soon the needles will begin to fall off.
* A good spruce tree has all its branches very elastic and difficult to bend.
* If you rub spruce needles in your palm, you will smell the pine needles.
* A good spruce also has bright green needles.
2. If you plan to buy a Christmas tree for a period of less than 7 days, then it can be installed anywhere without much care. However, if you want the tree to stand for more than a week, you will have to take care of it.
3. The Christmas tree should not be placed next to a heat source such as a radiator, fireplace or heater.
4. Humidify the air. Pour water into the stand or, at worst, wrap the tree with a wet rag. It is better to use melt water so that the wood does not absorb chlorine.
5. You shouldn’t put a newly purchased Christmas tree right into the room. Leave her for several hours in the hallway or on the balcony.
And if you bought a Christmas tree more than a week before the holiday, then it is best to store it wrapped in paper and in the cold.
Read also: 20+ ways to BEAUTIFULLY decorate your TREE for the New Year
6. Before installation, clear the tree trunk of about 10 cm of bark. It is also worth using a sharp knife to plan the spruce, thereby opening its fresh pores.
7. Spray the spruce branches with water from a spray bottle. This way the tree will retain its freshness longer.
8. The Christmas tree can be installed in a bucket of wet sand. Approximately 1 liter of water is used for one bucket of sand. Add a small amount of glycerin or gelatin. The bottom of the tree trunk should be covered with sand by about 20 cm. Add water to the sand every two days.
9. If you install the Christmas tree in a bucket or tank with water, you can add citric acid (0.5 teaspoon), 1 tsp to the water. gelatin and crushed chalk. You can also add 1 aspirin tablet, a little salt and 1 tbsp. l. Sahara.
Aspirin prevents the proliferation of putrefactive bacteria.
Salt and sugar provide the tree with some nutrients.
10. When you decide to get rid of the Christmas tree, to remove dried needles, simply knock the trunk on the floor.
* Artificial Christmas tree made of polyvinyl chloride (PVC) must first be vacuumed. But you shouldn’t wash it, as there is a risk that the metal rods will rust.
The spruce will last 10 days and will have a faint aroma.
Pine can last up to 14 days and will delight you with a strong aroma.
Fir can last up to 21 days with a medium aroma.
1. Give it for recycling. The Christmas tree can be turned into sawdust for boiler houses or fertilizer.
2. Take the Christmas tree to the zoo, where it will become food for the animals.
3. If you have a summer house, you can chop the branches and trunk to make a protective layer for the soil.
4. You can make a paste for colds:
* Grind 300 gr. needles
*Add 200 gr. honey.
*Add 50 gr. propolis
Store the solution in the refrigerator.
Use the solution 1 tbsp. spoon 3 times a day before meals, washed down with warm water.
Can you imagine New Year without a Christmas tree? Of course not! But if at the same time you do not want to be “pleased” by an artificial tree, and decide to buy a real forest beauty, and one that would last until the Old New Year, that is, about two weeks, you need to make sure that the tree waits until the last New Year holiday.
First you need to be able to choose the right New Year's tree.
Please note that Christmas tree must fit in the room where it will stand.
Check that the tree is fresh, not dry, and that its branches are elastic (bend easily without breaking). And in order to deliver the forest beauty to the scrapyard safe and sound, wrap it in burlap and tie it with twine.
If you live in your own home and there is a small Christmas tree growing in your garden, you can take it into your home for the New Year. To do this, a few days before the holiday, the tree is transplanted into a spacious container, the roots are generously moistened with water, wrapped in synthetic film and sprinkled with moss or peat. But you should not immediately move the Christmas tree to a warm room - it may die. First, place it in a bright, cool room, and some time later (the day before the holiday) bring it into a heated room. This way you will be able to avoid sudden temperature changes.
Do not place the tree close to heating devices, ventilate the room more often and water it abundantly. Since moss absorbs moisture very quickly, you should spend about four liters of water on watering every day. When the holidays are over, make sure to save the tree until next New Year. Take the tub of spruce outside and place it in a place protected from the wind. In warm weather, you can immediately transplant the tree into the ground. When it’s cold, it’s better to wait until spring and bury the spruce together with the tub in the garden, covering it with peat, film or snow.
How to handle an already cut Christmas tree? Here are some tips on how to preserve a felled forest beauty longer.
Place the tree in a bucket of damp sand or soil, having first cleared the bottom of the tree of bark. The humidity of the sand must be maintained constantly.
You can put the Christmas tree in a bucket of water, adding a little glycerin.
If you have to place the Christmas tree on a stand, then you need to put it in water with glycerin for at least a day, then make a cut in the trunk and put a woolen rag there. It will need to be moistened with water daily. Instead of glycerin, you can add half a teaspoon of urea to a bucket of water.
Take 5 g for 3 liters of water citric acid, 6 g gelatin and 16 g crushed chalk. The cut of the trunk must be refreshed, and the water in the bucket must be added as its level decreases.
Take two stainless steel plate electrodes. The plus one is placed in a tarpaulin bag - a piece of fire hose is suitable for this. Slightly alkaline water is formed inside the bag, and outside it the alkalinity reaches 10 units. This water is used to water the Christmas tree. You can prepare such anode water in 1-3 minutes. The cut of the tree is freshened before installation, and the part of the trunk immersed in water is cleared of bark. On such a tree, after a couple of weeks, buds appear and young shoots grow. It will last until May if you monitor the water level in the vessel.
Add a pinch of salt, a spoonful of sugar and an aspirin tablet to the bucket of water in which the Christmas tree will stand. The cut on the trunk needs to be updated. Keep an eye on the water level, and the tree will last a month.
For 1 liter of water put 25-40 g of sweet syrup and 1 teaspoon each of flower fertilizer and bleach for cotton fabrics.
