There’s nothing as special as taking your family on a trip to a local tree farm to pick out your Christmas tree. Besides being more “fresh” and healthy, these trees will have a special meaning because you picked them out. But before you pick a tree and break out the saw, make sure you check these things first:

- Check a tree’s freshness by bending a few of the needles. If they snap or feel brittle, it’s because the tree is dry or lacking moisture. Try finding a tree whose needles bend rather than snap.

- Look for a full, green tree with no brown spots or missing branches. These could also be indicators that the tree is dying or won’t last as long as it should.

Whether you’ve purchased your tree from a farm stand or trekked to a local tree farm and taken the time to pick out and cut your perfect Christmas tree, you should know these tips for taking care of the tree once it gets to your home:

- If you don’t plan to set up the tree inside your house immediately, leave the tree outside for a couple of hours or days. Keep the tree protected from wind and the sun.

- Before setting up the tree in your home, remember to cut about 1/2 - 1 inch off of the stump. Make a clean cut and be careful not to bruise the tree. If you do not cut the end, the tree will not absorb water because sap will build up and block the pores.

- Do not set your tree up in front of a heater or fire place, this will only dry the tree out.

- After cutting the stump, place the tree immediately in your stand with water. If you need to trim down the sides of the trunk to make it fit in the stand, purchase a larger stand.

- Make sure to water the tree daily and monitor its intake. During the first few days or week, the tree will consume the most water.

- Some people recommend adding sugar, asprin and/or bleach to the tree’s water. Roughly 1/2 cup of sugar is recommended and 1/2 teaspoon of bleach. The bleach will help kill any bacteria in the tree. None of these tips have been proven for a more successful or long-living tree, they are just recommendations.

-Safety tips: Don’t use combustible decorations, do not put real candles on the tree, do not leave a lit tree alone or unattended for long periods of time, make sure all electrical cords are not damaged and have secure connections.

- When disposing of your tree, never burn it. Bring it to your local recycling center.

Debates about real versus fake Christmas trees:

-Buying an artificial Christmas tree will not cost the life of a tree. True and false. True, your artificial tree is made out of plastic and petrolium and will not technically cost a tree its life. False, remember that artificial trees are stored and shipped in cardboard boxes. When real trees are cut and purchased, new trees are replanted. Used Christmas trees are also often recycled into mulch and wood chips.

-Buying an artificial tree costs less. True, sort of. If you actually use the artificial tree for more than 5-10 years you will save money. However, most people don’t use their artificial Christmas trees for that long due to bent or missing branches and bulb burnouts.

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