:max_bytes(150000):strip_icc()/GettyImages-1479925524-045cde977b9248c7887f097cf084feab.jpg?w=1024&resize=1024,1024&ssl=1 "Don’t Toss Those Christmas Tree Needles—Here’s How to Put Them to Work Outside")
Key Points
- Save dried Christmas tree needles as a free, effective mulch that won’t change your soil’s pH.
- Gather fallen needles to use around shrubs and perennials for moisture retention.
- Boil fresh green needles, dilute the liquid, and use it as a quick fertilizer boost for acid-loving plants.
Not much compares to the fresh, invigorating fragrance of a live Christmas tree. Today, most are raised on farms as a crop, but fresh evergreens have been used as holiday decorations for centuries. A fresh-cut tree can last in your home for two to four weeks, depending on the species and conditions.
But eventually your Christmas tree skirt, carpet, or floor will be covered with a messy layer of shed needles. Don’t pitch them out. There are myriad ways to put them to good use in the garden.
Mulch
Pine needles are light and break down slowly, releasing nutrients and improving soil composition. While initially acidic, they do not significantly alter soil pH.
These qualities make excellent mulch for flowerbeds and trees, and green needles can give a quick boost to acid-loving plants like blueberries and rhododendrons.
Pinestraw, often sold commercially in bales, is no different than the dried needles that fall from your Christmas tree except for cost. Your Christmas tree, along with other evergreens growing in your landscape, makes an excellent, free mulch. It’s considered a superior mulch and adds a pleasing toasted brown color spread around trees and over flowerbeds.
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Soil Amendment
Evergreen needles are full of vitamins and minerals, nutrients that plants can assimilate and use for vigor and good health.
Their size and weight break down easily, improving aeration, drainage, and microorganisms. They don’t form clumps or mat together like leaves and grasses.
Warning
Christmas trees are sometimes sprayed with pesticides or treated with agents to help retain needles and last longer. Needles from treated trees are best left out of the vegetable garden or beds where edibles are grown. It’s also a good idea to check your tree for signs of insect pests or fungal infections like white mold on the trunk or branches. Save these needles for another use.
Natural Pesticide and Disease Control
Substances called terpenes give evergreens their distinct, sharp fragrance, which acts as a natural pest and disease barrier in the garden.
Needles and bark contain antioxidants and antimicrobial peptides that discourage fungi, bacteria, and viruses. Bad bugs are repelled, but the fresh scent attracts pollinators and beneficial microorganisms.
Insulation and Weed Suppressant
Layered 2 to 4 inches thick, pine needles act as an insulator against extreme heat and cold. They keep the root zone warm during periods of low temperature,s but also help retain moisture to keep roots from drying out during extreme heat.
Terpenes in pine needles inhibit weeds by preventing air and nutrient uptake needed for many common weeds to germinate and grow. Terpenoids have and continue to be a study subject for their effects on both plants and people.
Compost
Pine needles add carbon as the ‘brown’ portion in your compost pile. They are dry, woody materials rich in carbon needed to balance nitrogen-rich waste from kitchen scraps, freshly cut grass, and other green plant material.
Already small in size, they can be added directly to help aerate the pile and prevent too much moisture and the resultant odor.
They break down slowly, releasing potassium and phosphorus into the soil. These are two of the essential minerals required for plant health and vigor.
Pine Needle Tea Fertilizer
Pine needle tea works as a briefly acidic fertilizer that can give your acid-loving plants a quick boost, improving flowering and fruit production.
Chop green needles into small pieces. Cover with water and bring to a boil, then simmer for 15 minutes. Strain and add 10 parts of water to one part of the pine needle decoction.
Rhododendrons, azaleas, camellias, berries, and brambles are a few garden plants that thrive in acidic soils.
Line Garden Paths
Pine needles give garden paths an appealing natural look and create a soft surface for walking. They drain easily and offer some weed suppression when applied thickly.
Maintain walkways by refreshingthem every few years for a pleasing rustic feel to your landscape.