As Christmas is approaching right around the corner, families all over the world have decorated their houses with lights, garlands, and stockings. However, there has been lots of controversy surrounding the main decoration: the Christmas tree. Should you cut down trees? Is it worth the hundreds of dollars for a plastic tree that might not meet your expectations? Do you really want to clean up the dropping needles of a real tree? There’s plenty of reasons to be either pro-real tree or pro-fake tree, but in the end both sides of the argument have their pros and cons.

To start off, one downside of having a real tree is having to constantly water it. Getting on your knees and having to lay under the tree to check its water levels every day and then trying to fit a container of water into that small space is probably one of my worst nightmares. Another downside is that you never really know how long your tree will last. You may think that if you purchase your tree in the beginning of December, then it will last until Christmas, but there have been times the needles drop within a week of having the tree. Speaking of needles, the mess they make when you bring the tree into the house, set it up, and take it out of the house is almost as annoying as glitter. However, purchasing real trees does have positive impacts, especially for the environment. Unlike artificial trees, real trees don’t contain harmful chemicals, and despite popular belief, they are more environmentally friendly than plastic trees. Even though many people throw out their Christmas trees on the side of the road, they can be used as lumber, mulch, and fertilization. To add on to these positive impacts, because people buy real trees every year, farmers regulate how many trees they plant throughout the year, so don’t worry about cutting down a tree for your home. 

On the other hand, let’s talk about artificial trees… you know, the ones that have to be fluffed out by hand, the ones that can look pretty tacky if they aren’t set up right? Now, I have to admit, I have used both real and fake trees throughout my life, but there’s something off about fake trees. Although the process of setting up and taking down the tree is much easier than a real tree, the prices of artificial trees have soared in recent years. To be honest, don’t waste your money on artificial trees. Between carbon emissions and the resources used to produce artificial trees, they negatively affect the environment. If you have an artificial tree, it would have to be used for at least 20 years before the chemicals would no longer have an impact on the environment. Not to mention that most, if not all artificial trees are not recyclable. Though there aren’t many positives about artificial trees, they are useful if you’d like to add more creativity to your decorations. In recent years, the trend of artificial trees being built upside down has sparked, adding a non-traditional look to holiday decorations. Artificial trees may also be beneficial if you have high ceilings and are trying to fill some space.

In the end, the decision is ultimately up to you whether you would like to use a real or artificial Christmas tree. Despite the anger a real tree can bring you, I personally think they are better than artificial trees, especially considering the positive impacts they have on the environment. I also think that with how expensive artificial trees are, they aren’t worth the effects they will have on the environment in the long run.