Waste not, want not!

We got our first "real" Christmas tree last year. It was wonderful and smelled so sweet! After the holidays, though, I had no idea what to do with it! Burning it just seemed wrong to me, as it is a creature of nature. I think we just set it out and the garbage people took it. This year I vowed to find ways to use my tree. My friend Brittany over at Gardening Adventures suggested using the needles and branches as mulch, and the trunk as fire wood. Brilliant! This way, my plants could keep using the tree, and it would be supplying my new plants with shade and nutrients.

I took my tree outside, and proceeded to cut each branch off. What a workout it was! I felt so accomplished afterward though. Then, I noticed a tree on the curb about 10 blocks away. I started thinking 'oh no, I don't want that tree to be burned!' and proceeded to drag both kids in a wagon down the block. It turns out this tree was 9 feet tall and weighed at least 30 pounds! It did not look that way from afar. Well, amidst more than a few crazy stares, I dragged this beast home. Covered in sap, I cut every twisted and jagged branch off. Victory! I was so happy! So, needless to say, the next day when two (closer) neighbors put their trees out, I totally took them too! I *think* I am all set on pine branches, to my husbands relief. But I cannot wait to chop the trunks up, light a fire, and put the mulch on my new garden beds.

The top is the giant pile of branches I cut off. My arms are so sore! The bottom is the four trunks. See that crazy jagged one? That was the 9 footer.

Waste not, want not! :)