So it’s about this time of year, that debate is on everyone lips – “When are you supposed to take the Christmas Tree and decorations down?”

Well if you haven’t done it yet, then it’s generally accepted that this weekend is the time. Of course if you’ve invested in a real tree, then some of you may have been putting off this tiresome task – unable to bare the prospect of picking up umpteen thousands of pine needles spread all over the house that you keep finding over the next few months! Well take a little tip from us and get your tarp out – follow these simple directions and you might find you can keep that pine needle infestation to a minimum.

Of course the first thing you’ll need to do is to strip your tree of all its lights and decorations. Next you should turn your attention to the base, stand or pot that you have your tree standing in. Hoover up any pine needles around the base of the tree (or anywhere else – they may well have been traipsed all over the living room so you might as well give the whole room a hoovering).

Now, if you’ve stood your tree in some kind of pot you might also have added a little water to help prevent your tree from drying out too much. If that’s the case then you need to remove that excess water as best you can before you do anything. If you have a wet and dry vac that can handle small amounts of debris (pine needles etc), then you can use that to vac away the water and wet mulch (a Pond Vacuum would also be excellent for this job). Failing that, you could find that something like a turkey baster (you may well have one of those handy) could be good for removing the surface moisture, and then just scoop out any remaining mulch.

Next spread your tarp out on the floor. Remove any ballast from the base of the tree. Put on some Protective Gloves, and gently lift the tree from the pot and lay it down on the Tarp. Do this gently enough and you should ensure that shedding is not too drastic and that the bulk of it will be caught by the tarp. Roll the tree into the tarp and securely fasten at the ends with Light Rope, Bungees or other Fastenings.

Now, where most people come a cropper and end up with needles and all kinds of mess littering up their front room is when manoeuvring that tree out of the door. What tends to happen is that people don’t stop to think, and head through the door with the tree positioned head first. The branches splay and catch on the door jams and you find yourself with tree and debris tipping all over your nice clean floor. Seeing as you’ve wrapped your tree nicely in your tarp this shouldn’t be as much of a problem. But you’d be surprised how those branches can poke out and catch against things, so even though you’ve wrapped you tree, make sure you pass it through all doorways butt first. That way you’ll have much less chance of anything catching.

Recycle That Tree

You may be surprised to learn that most local authorities want your tree! Yes, believe it or not councils are usually quite keen to recycle your tree – basically they shred them into chippings, which can then be used locally in parks and woodlands. If you have a green bin many authorities such as Manchester City Council, will take your tree off your hands if you leave it out on any recycling day in January. If your authority doesn’t offer this service they most likely arrange drop off points (possibly at your local tip), specifically for recycling Christmas trees. You can find full details and your closest recycling or drop off point at the Recyclenow website.

If your council doesn’t collect, just strap your tree to your roof and head to your nearest recycling point. Our LoopRope’s are the perfect thing for securing and transporting your Christmas tree, or all manner of other items (see image).

Follow these simple tips and you’ll be relatively pine needle free, while also knowing that you're being kind to the environment, and helping out your local council.