When a Christmas tree is no longer magical with ornaments and lights, it’s all too often tossed unceremoniously into the garbage, over a cliff or in a ditch right after the holidays. But there’s no reason that holiday greens can’t be allowed to serve long after the merry-making is over. (Consider it your responsibility to give the tree another life!)

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For a splash of instant green outdoors, cut branches off the tree and add them to barren window boxes or containers. Or recycle them into an arrangement for your porch or walkway. To do this, fill a container with sand, gravel or stones. Collect more materials like holly, driftwood, branches covered with red rose hips, and dried flower stalks. Anchor the branches in the sand and arrange pine cones or stones around the base. And hey, if the sand freezes, even better.

You can also use branches to protect dormant plants. A quilt of evergreens helps stabilize soil moisture and temperature, reducing the freeze/thaw cycles that can shove perennials and shrubs from the ground or simply reduce them to mush.

Setting branches out in the yard helps your feathered friends, too. Birds appreciate a protective screen when foraging for food. Finally, what if, after the holidays, you’re stuck with a dried out, Charlie Brown Christmas tree? The way I see it, you’ve got a couple choices. First think spring. Run your tree through a chipper (or participate in your community's chipping service), to make a fabulous mulch for landscaped areas.

Second, your shriveled tree is an opportunity to have a bon fire with friends. Just bring your ice skates and hot cocao, and enjoy the warmth of the Christmas tree, lit up in a different light.

You'll find more tips like these sprinkled througout this blog and posted on my main website at www.plantea.com.