Looking for live Christmas trees in the Pensacola area? Look no further.
With Christmas just a couple of weeks away, now is the perfect time to buy a real Christmas tree.
Plenty of pop-up Christmas tree lots throughout Escambia and Santa Rosa counties are already open, if you’re looking for a fun post-Thanksgiving activity. If you’re willing to take a short drive, you can even cut down your own in Summerdale, Alabama.
Here’s a list of places you can find real Christmas trees in the Pensacola area.
Bailey’s Produce & Nursery
Fish River Christmas Tree Farm
Maphis Nursery and Tree Farm
Pensacola Seed & Garden
Pensacola Optimist Club Christmas Trees
Gulf Breeze Optimist Club Christmas Trees
Lowe’s
Home Depot
When is the best time to get a fresh Christmas tree?
The experience of buying a fresh Christmas tree is nearly impossible to match with even the most expensive artificial trees, but it comes with a greater cost: maintenance. And that maintenance begins as soon as you decide when you’re going to buy a Christmas tree.
Buying one too early runs the risk of prolonged exposure to something happening to the tree prior to Christmas, including outright dying. Even well watered trees will eventually dry up, so the best time to purchase a fresh Christmas tree is around the beginning of December, according to most sources.
How to care for a live Christmas tree
The National Christmas Tree Association provides some great tips on how to properly care for a fresh Christmas tree to ensure it lasts to the big day.
Choosing a suitable stand for your Christmas tree
Choosing the right stand for your real Christmas tree is one of the most important things you can do to prolong your tree’s life.
According to the Christmas Tree Association, displaying your tree in water with a reservoir-type stand is the most effective way to maintain its freshness and prevent it from losing its needles.
It’s a good rule of thumb to provide one quart of water per inch of stem diameter — and to ensure you purchase a tree stand that can match the required capacity.
You’ll also want to ensure the stand you purchase fits the trunk. A tree’s outer layers of wood are the most effective at absorbing water, so avoid cutting your tree’s trunk to fit inside a smaller stand.
Make a fresh cut to maximize water intake
Before displaying your tree, make a fresh cut and remove about half an inch of wood from the base of the trunk. A fresh cut will remove any dried sap and anything else that could interfere with how much water your tree absorbs.
Some trees may need to be cut a few times. It’s best to make the first cut and measure how much water is in the reservoir. Wait a day and measure again. Make another cut if the tree hasn’t absorbed any of the water.
A fresh cut is essential to making your tree appear fresh and vibrant throughout the season.
Pay attention to where you place your Christmas tree
A real Christmas tree is its best when it is located in a cool environment. To avoid potential fires, it’s advised to keep your tree away from any major source of heat like fireplaces, heaters, heat vents and direct sunlight, according to the Christmas Tree Association.
Lowering the temperature also slows down the drying process, prolonging your tree’s life. Make sure you’re also using Christmas lights that produce low heat.
Here’s how to reduce the chance of catching your tree on fire
Inspect any Christmas lights going on your tree before you put them on and replace any lights that don’t work. You’ll also want to ensure that you don’t overload any electrical circuits your tree is connecting to and always turn off the lights before going to bed or leaving the house.
Here’s how often you should water your Christmas tree
Checking your Christmas tree’s stand should become a daily ritual. The general rule of thumb is to ensure there is always enough water in the stand’s reservoir to cover the tree’s base.
Some tree stands can still hold water even if the base isn’t submerged. In these cases, the stand will still need to be refilled with water to make sure the tree has access.
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This article originally appeared on Pensacola News Journal: Live Christmas trees are already available. You can even cut your own!
Reporting by Chemarryn Thornton, Pensacola News Journal / Pensacola News Journal
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
