apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

Howdy there neighbor. I am a bit north of you in Boulder. Apparently localharvest.org lists two spots for christmas trees... the South Pearl Farmer's Market in Denver. It seems like their market season is over, but there is contact information for the market organizer. Also listed is Villa Verde Tree in Morrison. I don't know your criteria for sustainability for your tree, but I have had very good experiences with local harvest registered businesses answering my questions. The Slow Food crowd is also a decent source for these types of questions I have. You are not eating the tree, but your local convivium may have some advice for you.

I have never been a x-mas tree fan but my husband is so we have been going back and forth on how to compromise on this. It looks like we are going towards a living Christmas tree. We will most likely go with Creek Side Nursery (http://www.creeksideboulder.com/). The Colorado State University extension site suggests keeping the tree indoors only five days and then taking it outside to plant. Here is a link to one of their articles about considering a living tree: http://www.colostate.edu/Dept/CoopExt/4dmg/Trees/livetree.htm
If you get one of these trees and don't have a place to plant it afterwards consider posting a craigslist ad to give it away for free for someone to plant in their yard or contact the parks department to plant.
Oh yeah, check craigslist for nurseries and farms listing their live trees there.

I wouldn't dismiss thinking about the permit for the forest service as it is one of the more ecologically sensible ways to get a tree. The forest maintains complex niches that are not replicated on farms. And while you may not want high yields of harvest on public land, you can work with the forest service to make sure you are getting a tree in an area targeted for fuel load reductions with their fire program. Most likely the tree will be targeted to be removed anyway.

Good luck.

Another idea - with the pine beetle epidemic, especially around Winter Park, there are a ton of downed and cut trees. I found a nice one on a hike near St. Louis Creek, cut off the top, and hauled it home for my Christmas tree. It's a little Charlie Brown, but I didn't have to kill a tree or buy a fake one.

Just a quick follow up. My husband and I found a compromise that works well in our home. We bought a Norfolk pine that we bought from a vendor at the Winter Farmer's Market and Holiday event yesterday. It is an indoor pine in our climate, is slow growing, and we apparently know a number of folks that successfully have them in their homes. It was a compromise for us because I wanted a tall plant and he wanted a pine for the holidays... win-win.