Holiday festivities are done and dusted, but it doesn’t always mean the end for real Christmas trees. What happens to them once Santa has taken his sleigh back to the North Pole?
For a potted tree from Eco Christmas Trees, life in January means being replanted on a property in Victoria as windbreakers. Prior to this, they were sold on as hedging trees to the public.
Anna Brock founded the Melbourne based company six years ago, due to her pet peeve of seeing brown, discarded trees decorating nature strips after Christmas.
She came up with the option of providing live, potted rental trees which are delivered, picked up, and then replanted. This closed loop business model primarily takes care of the tree for its Christmas phase, which ends up being a partial amount of the trees life.
She says that the most rewarding part of the business is being able to offer up an option that makes people stop and think about what they’re doing, and begin environmental conversations.
"The competition is people who have a tree, and then the people who are so used to the traditional tree, and trying to break into peoples traditions."
For a potted tree from White Star Christmas Trees, based in Brisbane and Melbourne, January is a time to hopefully be kept alive. Sisters Kate and Shelby provide tree care advice to their customers, including how to repot them and provide food and sunlight.
“People saw it and thought it was a good idea, and some would go out of their way to find something more eco-friendly,” Kate said of their potted trees.
Real Christmas Trees in Brisbane offer a pickup service for their live trees, which are then mulched by the local council.
Business owner Stefan says that their potted trees have become more popular with a "substantial jump" in popularity last Christmas. He also provides advice for customers on how to look after their potted tree throughout the year.
While trees of the plastic varirety are back in storage for the year, live and potted trees are just signing up for their post Christmas duties.
To find out how to recycle a Christmas tree in your area, contact your local council, check RecyclingNearYou, download the RecycleSmart app or call Planet Ark's National Recycling Hotline on 1300 733 712.