Christmas Traditions

Christmas traditions are an important part of our holiday spirit. When it comes to decorating the house and tree, my wife fancies the elegant and refined Victorian Christmas decór. Ribbons, garlands and elaborate decorations awaken the spirit of Christmas within all who enter our home. Each year everyone gets to pick out a new Christmas ornament for the tree (provided by Dutchman Tree Farms, of course). This helps the children associate special Christmas memories to each ornament they picked over the years. Baking is a big part of every Christmas. Leading up to Christmas, my wife, with kids in tow, is fond of frequenting cookie swaps. Some of our favorite baked delights include: Mexican wedding cakes, ginger snaps, Christmas cut-out sugar cookies with sprinkles (the kids won't eat them if they don't have sprinkles), Pfeffernuesse, and a plethora of Italian dessert breads. As a family, we attend a Christmas eve service. After the service, but right before their heads hit the pillows, the kids open one gift. Whether we want to or not, we start our Christmas morning early! The footsteps and loud voices of excited children remind us it is time to get up. Before breakfast, the lad and lasses check to make sure they didn't get coal in their stockings. After a delicious Christmas breakfast everyone sits down to open all the gifts under the tree. The rest of the day is spent enjoying the blessings we have in our family and friends. With the children in bed, and a joyous day now over, my wife and I watch "A Christmas Carol" with George C. Scott and enjoy a few more cookies and some hot chocolate (possibly with a shot of Bailey's). What about your family traditions? Leave a comment and post some of your favorite cookie/dessert recipes! Buy a fresh Christmas Tree online at http://www.atreeforchristmas.com. Shipping is Free!

Not the Only Christmas Tree In a Box

I was reading the article “Real Christmas Trees Vs. Artificial: How to Choose”. The bottom line for why to choose an Artificial Tree was:

“Artificial Christmas trees are perfect for on-the-go families and those with a low patience threshold. It's simply a tree-in-a-box---literally. If you're short on time, on a tight budget, or just don't want to venture out in the frightful weather, an artificial Christmas tree could be just what you need.”

What author of the is article must not realize is that her argument for the fake tree could also be made for ordering your real Christmas tree from ATreeForChristmas.com

-“perfect for the on-the- go families and those with a low patience threshold.” It doesn’t get easier than ordering online and having your real Christmas tree shipped right to your door. For those of you of who have ever tried to put together a fake Christmas tree, you know it is like piecing it together a 3-D jigsaw puzzle, trying to manipulate metal and plastic to create a natural look. I don’t really see how that is good for people with a low patience threshold.

-“It’s simply a tree-in-a-box---literally.” Literally when you order your real Christmas tree from ATreeForChristmas.com it comes right to your door in … get this… a box. No really, it is shipped in a box and you don’t even have to put it together.

-“Short on time” it takes less than five minutes to order online, and you don’t have to wait in a checkout line.

-“on a tight budget” with free shipping from one of the largest Christmas trees farms in the US, you get the highest quality Christmas tree for the very best price.

- “Don’t want to venture out in the frightful weather” How about you just open your front door.
I think that the author of this article made some great points, but not in favor of the fake Christmas tree. Choose the other Christmas tree in a box this year, it could be just what you need.

To order your real Christmas tree in a box go to the website ATreeForChristmas.com. Use the code HASSLEFREE and save 10% off your entire order.

Dutchman Christmas Tree Farm Family

When we say, “We ship the Christmas Tree directly from the farm to you” we really should say “We ship the Christmas Tree from our family to yours”. Working at Dutchman Tree Farm really does feel like a family. And we aren’t the dysfunctional type of family with the crazy uncle and the brother no one talks about. No, it’s more like the kind of family that if you need anything they will be there for you. Amazing, inspiring and funny people work here and I will be spotlighting some of these characters here on the blog. Today I want to spotlight …Pam McLeod, the resident mother/grandmother of Dutchman Tree Farms.

Pam has been working with Dutchman Tree Farms for the last 33 years and she has done a little bit of everything; planting, loading trucks, leading pruning crews, anything and everything Christmas Trees. Right now she works in the office and helps organize loads and book out trucks to stores across the US. Hard worker and mother of the office, it is certain that you cannot work with Pam McLeod without feeling encouraged, challenged and taken care of.

Not only is Pam a harder worker, caring and compassionate, she is dedicated. Just the other day Pam took a nasty spill off her bicycle. Yes, this grandmother of 15 rides her bike, cross country skis and does triathlons to stay in shape. After taking this spill, destroying her helmet, being knocked slightly unconscious and separating her shoulder (this should give some indication of how fast she was going) she came into work. Yes, bruised and sore she came in the very next day saying that working at her desk would be the best for her recovery.

So there she sits, with ice pack on her shoulder and a cherry red road rash under her right eye, inspiring us all to quit our whining and get back to work. Now doesn’t that just sound like family?

Would you like your Christmas Tree shipped from our Family to yours? Go to ATreeForChristmas.com and order yours today and you can have your Fresh Christmas Tree or Live Christmas Tree at your door just in time for Thanksgiving.

How Green are We?

I learned so much today about Dutchman Tree Farms after having to ask myself… How green are we? Well actually The National Parks Association asked me that question. They want to know how green we are before they endorse us for our green 2 green fundraiser. They asked me about the boxes we use to ship our products in, our fertilizers and our pesticides. When I get asked questions, I usually ask questions and I usually just ask Google, but today I asked the Dutchman Tree Farm growers. With these guys coming in and out of the office all day I was in the perfect spot to stop and ask each of them, Exactly how green are we?

While none these guys knew whether our boxes were recycled or not, I did learn quite a few things about how we do things here at Dutchman Tree Farms:
We prefer to use natural fertilizers, ashes, lime, peat moss and I was told that this year we have used more manure than ever before. We also use cover crops that are then cultivated into the ground. Any other fertilizers we use are used minimally.

As far as pesticides, I learned that because of the gypsy moth we have to spray all of our trees before we can ship them. Check out this link for the gypsy moth and you will see why using some pesticides is very important.

Other than that we use no pesticides that are considered dangerous and the pesticides that we do use, we use conservatively. We have good credibility with the Department of Agriculture and we also allow natural pest to be natural pest when they are protecting our Christmas Trees.

Other tid bits of info I picked up: We have a very extensive water conservation system. After we harvest, the stumps are ground and reticulated into the soil. Because of this, some of the sandy soil that we have is richer in nutrients after one harvest than in the 40 years prior. We replant several times more seedling than what we harvest.

So after my multiple horticultural lessons, I feel really good about working at Dutchman Tree Farms and can say that we are an environmentally friendly farm. Oh, and for our boxes… they are made of 100% recycled paper. So when you order your Christmas Tree or a Live Christmas Tree, from ATreeForChristmas.com, you can feel good too.

Would you like to ask a Christmas Tree Grower a question? Go to ATreeForChristmas.com and click the Ask Your Grower Tab.

Use the code: HasselFree and save 10% off your intire order at ATreeForChristmas.com

The American Christmas Tree Association, As Fake as Their Christmas Trees

Today I read the following article on the American Christmas Tree Association's (ACTA) web-site: Carbon Footprint Study Finds Artificial Christmas Trees Best for the Environment.

My curiosity got the better of me and I searched their site hoping to find the results of this study. My efforts were in vain. The only information I found, other than their interpretation of the supposed results, was that the study was an "in-depth analysis". Now if that doesn't make you wonder, look them up on Wikipedia. You will read the following, "The group claims to have sponsored studies, but hasn't released the actual studies to the public".

Still not convinced? Here is an excerpt from their study:

"The study, sponsored by the American Christmas Tree Association and conducted by leading international sustainability firm PE Americas, found that the most significant contribution to global warming came from fossil fuel consumption in transportation of real Christmas trees from tree farms and lots to consumer homes."

What is wrong with this picture? I can see three things:

1. It looks like the root of the problem here is "fossil fuel consumption in transportation", that is driving a car, and has very little to do with Christmas trees.
2. Last time I checked an artificial Christmas tree doesn't just appear in a living room. I think someone has to drive to the local Home Depot or Lowe's and pick it up.
3. If the ACTA went to all the trouble of sponsoring this study why didn't they publish the scientific results?

I am the kind of guy who needs answers and after reading this article it left me with a question. Is there something they aren't telling me? I promptly began to do my own research and this is what I found.

Artificial Christmas trees are made of Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC). What's the big deal, right? We have pipes in our basements and wires in our walls which contain PVC. Wrong!

1. Early 1970's Dr. John Creech and Dr. Maurice Johnson were the first to clearly link and recognize the cancer causing tendency found in the chemicals used in PVC.
2. Greenpeace has advocated the global discontinuing of PVC because dioxin is produced as a byproduct vinyl chloride manufacturing and from the burning of PVC waste.
3. California is currently considering a bill, sponsored by Californians Against Waste to ban using PVC in packaging because of the threats it poses to the health of humans and the environment.
4. PVC is not normally recycled after use because the recycling process is very costly.
5. In 2005 Dr. Richard Maas, after a study conducted on artificial Christmas trees, is quoted as saying, "We found that if we leave one of these trees standing for a week, and we wipe under the tree we'll find large amounts of lead dust..."
6. A 2008 U.S. Environmental Protection Agency report found that of the 50 million artificial trees in the US about 20 million were 9 or more years old, the point where dangerous lead levels are reached.
7. California requires that each artificial Christmas tree come with a warning label about the toxins contained in the PVC.

So does this mean a real Christmas tree is better?

I was able to find a study that actually did share it's scientific results. There are three points I want to highlight about this study:

1. Results show that a natural tree will generate 3.1 kg of greenhouse gases whereas the artificial tree will produce 8.1 kg per year.
2. ellipsos chose the Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) method to perform this study. It follows the recognized ISO 14040 and 14044 standards and it was reviewed by an independent third-party of peers.
3. Interestingly, to compensate for the impacts of a Christmas tree, be it natural or artificial, one can offset the carbon emissions by carpooling or biking to work only one to three weeks per year.(I wonder how many people at the American Christmas Tree Association are doing their part here...)

One last note. For every Christmas tree cut down on a farm many more are planted. Dutchman Tree Farms planted over 750 thousand trees already this year.

Regarding whether the American Christmas Tree Association is a fake like their trees... I'll let you decide.

References:

• The American Christmas Tree Association's dubious study
• Notes on PVC
• Californians Against Waste's sponsored bill
• Quick Facts about Lead in Artificial Christmas Trees
• Summary of the Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) conducted by ellipsos
• Scientific Results of LCA (found in the pdf at the bottom of the article)
• Oh Christmas tree, oh green Christmas tree