Put Your Christmas Tree to Good Use for Animals
Most trees that are sold for Christmas are fir, pine or spruce trees, which all fall under the category of coniferous trees. These kinds of trees can be beneficial to many kinds of wildlife in your area. For example, blue grouse eat the needles from fir trees while quail and songbirds seek shelter in conifers because of the warm air that gets trapped in the branches. Snowshoe hares, deer and elk use conifers to avoid the worst of winter weather as well as to keep themselves hidden from predators.
Before you toss out your real Christmas tree or decide to recycle it, consider using it to help out the local animals in your area. Read on for some suggestions:
Take your tree, as well as trees from other people you know, and turn them into a brush pile in a farm area, meadow or woodland in your community. Brush piles can help provide protection from the cold and the harsh elements of winter for ground squirrels, skunks, snakes, and rabbits. They also can provide dens for red foxes and sites for nesting. You can go around and build multiple piles for different species to use.
In order for brush piles to be beneficial to wildlife, they must be approximately five feet in height and 12 to 15 feet in diameter. You can simply stack trees in a grid like pattern one on top of the other. Another option is to place logs, stumps and big rocks on the ground before you make the brush pile. If you live in a windy area, you might want to place a couple of logs on the top of the pile so it will not get blown away.
If your yard does not have many trees but you do have lots of snow, then put the base of the Christmas tree into a snow bank and let the birds use it for shelter during the cold winter months.
If you have a stream or pond nearby or if one is on your property, then use your Christmas tree (and those collected from other people) to make a habitat for fish and frogs. Tie the trees together as carefully as possible and then anchor them securely with the help of big rocks.
There are lots of ways your Christmas tree can help to protect animals and their habitat if you just put your imagination to work!
