Open fires are prohibited throughout the park from midnight to 4 p.m. through April 30 per the 4 p.m. Burning Law. This includes wood and charcoal. Gas is permissible. Campground fires are allowed during the restricted time if a camp host is on duty and signage to that effect is posted in the campground. Failure to observe the 4 p.m. Burning Law can result in a fine. Contact the Park Office for additional information.

Home > Blog > To tree or not to tree? That is the question

To tree or not to tree? That is the question

By Guest BloggerPosted December 06, 2023

Shared by Tanya Hall, as Guest Blogger.

Christmas is right around the corner and many people are biting at the bit to start decorating. Many households are lit up with blowup Santa Clauses, 10-foot-high snowmen, glittery tube-lite trees that sparkle at night, and the green garland, handmade wreaths, and live Christmas trees that just pull all the decorations together to create that festive look so many love.

It is highly likely that many of our Christmas trees that stand tall in our living rooms and light up our evenings come from our neighboring county, Grayson County. Some Christmas tree sellers in Grayson County wholesale over 700,000 trees each year. When purchasing live Christmas trees, make sure you purchase from a farm close to where you live or get a permit to cut forest land near you so invasive species aren’t introduced into the area. When buying wreaths and other live decorations off the internet, buy them from a respectable business that follows safety regulations; therefore, once again, you won’t be taking a chance on introducing an organism into the neighborhood that wasn’t there before.

Grayson County Christmas Tree Farm

In our household, the dilemma is whether to buy a live tree or an artificial tree. There are pros and cons to both. As a live tree grows, it removes carbon from the air and adds oxygen, which helps to slow global warming. Fake Christmas trees are made with materials that come from the use of fossil fuels, which can increase global warming. On the other hand, Christmas tree farms cut down on the biodiversity (the number of different species) of an area and they use a ton of pesticides, which can hurt our environment. Live Christmas trees only last for a few months, while artificial trees last for years. The artificial tree in our house is almost 15 years old!

Artificial tree with decorations

If you do decide to purchase a live tree, make sure you dispose of it in an environmentally friendly way after the holidays. Hungry Mother State Park will take all live trees and reuse them as fish attractors in the lake. We will collect them at the boat ramp off Mitchell Valley Road (as you enter, watch for signs to tell you where to place the trees), then partnering with the Department of Wildlife Resources and Grand Valley State in Grand Rapids, Michigan, we will tie them to cinder blocks and drop them in the lake. This adds to the structure on the bottom of the lake, giving fish and other organisms a habitat to live. Due to the age of the man-made lake, there is no longer any structure on the bottom, so this is very beneficial to the aquatic wildlife.

Claytor Lake and Fairy Stone state parks are also accepting tree donations for their lakes. You can learn more about where and when to drop off your trees below.

Preparing the new habitats

Heading out to place the trees

If you don’t bring your trees to the lake, you can mulch them for use around your house. Or you might pile a bunch of trees together in your backyard and place birdseed around it to see what birds you may attract. This makes a wonderful wildlife habitat not only for birds but squirrels, rabbits, deer and groundhogs. But remember, only mulch or pile trees that were purchased locally because non-native invasive insects can be introduced to the area out of the mulch or dead and decaying trees.

Ornament on an artificial tree

We hope you enjoy the holiday season, whether your tree is real or artificial. And if you can find a way to let your live tree become a living habitat, that’s like extending the holiday season through the whole year.