Posted by: Mary Johnston
Not everyone celebrates Christmas or wants a tree to decorate, yet for those who have this tradition and wish to know eco-friendly options, here are some thoughts.
Spoiler alert: A real tree is better than a plastic tree.
Real tree options:
- A harvested tree: Buy local. Support farmers who reduce or don’t use pesticides and herbicides. Look for sellers who donate part of their funds to community causes.
In OOS, each year Chris Smith sells trees at the Ottawa Tennis Club on Cameron Ave. He donates $6 per tree sold to Habitat for Humanity and has been doing this for more than 20 years.
- Indoor potted pine: For smaller spaces like a one-bedroom apartment, a Norfolk Island Pine may be an ideal choice. This beautiful plant can be grown indoors year-round and adorned as your Christmas tree for the season. Or consider any of your indoor potted plants for decorating.
- Potted tree: This is an evergreen purchased from a nursery (consider juniper, cedar, spruce). Decorate it and enjoy for the Christmas week. Water it well to ensure it remains healthy. Then shortly after, put it outside. When spring comes, you have a tree to plant! This is for properties with space for such a tree to grow fully.
- Rent: There are companies that rent potted trees. You order a tree, they deliver and then after the season is done, they pick it up. It involves keeping the tree healthy (watering regularly) during its time with you. Unfortunately, there are no companies in the Ottawa area offering this service presently.
DIY tree:
There are lots of fun ideas for making your own tree – a crafty fun project that is different each year and an enjoyable family activity! Search for ideas which are plentiful on the internet.
Artificial tree:
Artificial trees have a carbon footprint that is three times that of real trees. Generally, they are made from plastic (polyvinyl chloride or PVC), which can’t be recycled. They are typically made overseas which adds shipping emissions to the carbon footprint. If you are considering an artificial tree, you need to use it for over 20 years to lower its carbon footprint to that of a real tree. However, ultimately, it will take hundreds to thousands of years to decompose.
What to do with your tree after Christmas?
There are several options. In the past, the NCC has had a Christmas Tree drop-off just south of Dow’s Lake, as they use trees on the canal. The Kichi Sibi Winter Trail has also accepted trees to be used as windbreaks on their trails. Or consider contacting Vanderlaand Barnyard Zoo which uses the trees for their animals. Follow Enviro Crew of Old Ottawa South Facebook page for updates on these and other options.
The City of Ottawa also has information on its website with ideas for your trees: Leave them in your backyard for birds to shelter in, create garden stakes or edging from trimmed branches, etc. If you leave your tree at the curbside (no decorations/plastic) a city contractor will mulch the trees for recycling.
The bottom line: DIY and living trees are best. If you are buying a real tree, then buy local. Support farms that don’t use pesticides and herbicides. And look for tree lots that donate to community causes.
Mary Johnston is a resident of Old Ottawa South and a member of the Enviro Crew’s Tree Team.
Featured in the December 2025 OSCAR.