You bought (or were given) for the New Yeara real live tree in a container? A tree in a pot is wonderful! This means that you can try not only to keep it alive until the spring warmth, but also to transplant it into open ground in your garden. Of course, there is no guarantee that this particular conifer will take root perfectly in your region, but it is still worth a try. How to care for a tree in a pot during the New Year holidays and after them?
Live Christmas tree in the New Year holidays
First of all, you need to choose fora suitable place for the New Year's beauty. Find the coolest place in the room where you plan to put the decorated tree. Away from the hot battery and heaters and closer to the perch, but so that the sun's rays do not fall on the tree. The dry air of a heated room is not suitable for this forest guest. Therefore, spray it more often. Or even better, find a way to put the container with the tree directly in a basin or flowerpot with water. If you are embarrassed by the basin under the New Year's tree, decorate it with fabric and tinsel. Water must be constantly added to the basin. And do not forget to water the tree itself. Just do not get carried away. Otherwise, in warm air and with intensive watering, the tree may unexpectedly begin to grow (which is very undesirable for its successful subsequent cultivation). In fact, these are the necessary conditions that are important for maintaining the life of a green tree. Try to create the most suitable environment for the tree (as much as possible in a city apartment). Avoid electric garlands on the tree and especially candles. Water your tree, irrigate it, ventilate the room in which it stands. And after the New Year holidays, having removed the shiny outfit from the tree, try to save it for life in the open ground.
Live Christmas tree after the New Year holidays
The best option for the Christmas tree would be"Moving" to the fresh air immediately after the end of the New Year celebrations. If it is possible to bury the tree in the open ground (for example, during a thaw), then definitely do it. If you have not yet decided on a permanent place for the tree, bury it right in the container or at least bury it in the snow somewhere in the garden. Just choose a shady place and protected from the wind for this. If this is not possible, and the tree will have to be kept at home until spring, then you need to take measures to ensure its survival in urban conditions. Move the tree in a container to a glazed balcony (loggia) or to a cold windowsill. Or to a window in the stairwell in the entrance, unless, of course, this threatens your tree with finding new owners. Before moving the tree to the cold, moisten the soil well (moisten, do not flood!). And then constantly make sure that the soil in the pot does not freeze. Constantly turn the tree in different directions towards the light source and protect it from direct sunlight. For a small plant, you can create a microclimate using a large plastic bottle. Cut off the bottom of the bottle and make several small holes for air exchange. Cover the entire tree with the bottle together with the pot - this will provide constant humidity and create quite comfortable conditions for the tree. With the onset of the summer cottage season, the tree should be planted in the garden at the first opportunity. The place for the tree should be shaded. The size of the planting hole is 20-30 cm larger than the diameter of the earthen lump. And the walls of the hole should be steep. The composition of the soil mixture for the tree: two parts of turf soil and one part each of peat and sand. When planting the tree, make sure that the root collar is at ground level. Be prepared for the fact that conifers take root slowly and with difficulty. It is possible that this period will drag on for several seasons (up to three years).
Living room tree Araucaria
A great alternative to a real Christmas tree –indoor spruce or araucaria. This is a dark green fir tree with very thick and completely non-prickly needles. It can be purchased in many flower shops, although it is quite difficult to do so on New Year's Eve. Araucaria grows slowly, but by the age of five it reaches a height of two meters. It is best to keep it on northern windows and shade it from the sun. As the tree grows, you need to change its flower pots, and after it reaches a height of a meter - the top layer of soil. The soil itself for araucaria needs to be loose, with a good content of sand and peat. It is enough to water the indoor spruce once a week (abundantly), and from time to time also spray it. In general, caring for such a spruce is not much different from caring for other shade-loving indoor plants. Therefore, a decorative spruce in a pot does not cause much trouble throughout the year. But when winter comes, frost crackles outside or snow falls quietly, all cities and villages are feverish in anticipation of the New Year holidays, a real living Christmas tree turns green in your home. It is impatiently waiting for its magnificent New Year's outfit, so that once a year from an ordinary houseplant it turns into a fabulous New Year's beauty.... We recommend reading:
