Where Do The Un-Purchased Trees Go After Christmas?

I am an extremely sensitive person, and for some reason, I actually think that all of the Christmas trees at a tree farm have feelings. Call me crazy, but it's almost like when you go to a dog shelter. You know it's like that (how you look at all the dogs, but you can only take one home).

Ok. I know that's was probably an extreme comparison, but I always feel bad when a Christmas tree doesn't get a home. It just sits there all alone in a lot on Christmas. So when I read this article on USA Today, I felt a little better about what happens to the trees when they don't get picked by a family.

An Essex County business, Cedar Grove Christmas Trees, shared the approach for a "full cycle" for the trees. Cedar Grove Christmas Trees' owner, Rocco Malanga shared some of the insights:

This one is pretty obvious: some unused trees are repurposed for is mulch, Malanga shared.

The next one wasn't as obvious, but it's super cool: other leftover trees are actually used at the Jersey Shore to trap sand. They are tied together to help beach erosion and trap sand. In fact, the business explained that they sent many trees to the Shore after Hurricane Sandy in 2012.

Rocco says that the path for the trees ultimately depends on what state they are from (and why they weren't purchased as a holiday tree).

For example: in Louisiana: some of the leftover trees are used to restore marshes. Meanwhile, in Illinois, some of the trees are actually used have to create nests for endangered herons.

After reading this article and finding out about all the wonderful things the trees can be used for, makes me feel better about the ones that get left behind. I feel like that's one of the reasons why I got a fake tree a few years ago, so I don't have to go to a Christmas tree lot to feel sad for the trees that are left behind.

(USA Today)