The Most Eco-friendly Christmas Tree for You

Tree height is the foundation of our carbon math. For artificial trees, every extra foot means significantly more plastic and metal was manufactured and shipped, drastically increasing its carbon cost. For real trees, height tells us exactly how many years the tree spent actively absorbing carbon on the farm, as well as how much heavy wood you have to transport and dispose of.

Transportation is the hidden carbon cost of a real tree. Driving a gas-powered vehicle 40 miles to a rural farm can actually produce more emissions than the tree itself absorbed while growing!

Rented trees require two trips—one to pick it up, and one to return it after the holidays. This effectively doubles the transportation emissions, so we need to account for those extra miles.

Artificial trees are usually purchased at local big-box stores rather than distant farms. Tracking this specific distance helps us accurately compare the local drive against the trip to a tree farm.

How you dispose of a cut tree is an important factor in its total carbon footprint. If a tree ends up buried in a landfill, it decomposes without oxygen and releases methane as well as carbon dioxide. On the other hand, having the tree chipped into mulch or composted allows it to break down naturally and safely, keeping its carbon footprint incredibly low. Your disposal method can literally make the difference between a tree being eco-friendly or harmful to the environment.

"Christmas Tree Syndrome" is a very real thing! While actual tree pollen is rare in the winter, real trees carry dust, strong pine sap, and naturally occurring mold spores on their branches. When you bring a living or cut tree into a warm, cozy house, those mold spores can multiply rapidly and trigger severe indoor allergies or asthma. If you are highly sensitive to these, an artificial tree is going to be the absolute best route for your health, regardless of the carbon math.

Unlike cut real trees or artificial trees that sit in low-profile stands, living trees (like rented or replantable ones) must stay in massive pots to protect their root systems. This pot adds about 2 feet of extra height to the plant. If you want a 7-foot tree, it will actually stand 9 feet tall in your living room. We need to make sure the eco-friendly option will actually fit inside your house!

The amount of time you keep your tree indoors is the ultimate deciding factor for living trees. Potted, replantable trees can only survive in a warm house for about 7 to 10 days, while professional rental trees max out at 3 to 4 weeks. If they stay inside longer, the heat tricks them into thinking it’s spring. When they are moved back outside, the winter shock kills them—completely erasing their eco-friendly benefits!

Replantable trees need a permanent home to survive and continue pulling carbon out of the air. They require proper spacing away from your home's foundation, decent soil, and most importantly, a pre-dug hole—because by January, the ground in many areas is frozen solid! If you don't have a dedicated spot prepared, the tree won't survive the winter, which unfortunately erases its eco-friendly benefits.

Replanting a living Christmas tree is a serious physical commitment. The root ball of a standard tree can easily weigh over 100 pounds! It also requires a lot of manual labor and pre-planning—like digging the hole in the fall before the ground freezes, hauling the heavy tree out into the winter weather immediately after the holidays, and mulching it properly. If you aren't up for the heavy lifting, it's much better to know that now so we can recommend a more convenient eco-friendly option!