As trees develop, needles are shed naturally and the surrounding soil is enhanced. The trees also become home to birds and small animals and serve as winter habitats for deer and other wildlife. Fifty years ago, Christmas trees were often cut down in forests and not replaced with seedlings. Christmas trees are like other crops. Since trees are a crop, they are managed on a sustainable basis.
Tree roots stay in the soil after trees are cut, holding the soil in place and preventing erosion.
In addition, most trees are harvested by hand, not by machine, and are harvested only as needed. We don't see any reduction in wildlife with Christmas tree farms, we just see an exchange in the types of wildlife present in farms versus non-planted forests. Once real trees are discarded after the holidays, they can be recycled into such products as sand dune stabilizers, coastal shore fish habitats, fuel chips or bird feeders. Christmas trees can also be processed into mulch for hiking trails and landscapes or placed into brush piles for use as animal habitats. Such recycling is not possible with artificial Christmas trees, says Battaglia.