A few weeks back, a “brands vs. trees” graphic caught my attention and I played along. Naming the logos came easily, and I quickly identified six out of six logos correctly. Then came the leaves and ...

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What to buy, what to serve, which events to attend — December is typically full of decisions. Here’s one more for you to contemplate: What are you going to do with your Christmas tree? According to ...

I’ve always loved a real Christmas tree but struggled with the idea of cutting down trees just to decorate them inside my home for a few weeks a year. Trees are living things and to grow them just to ...

When the snow lays deep and leaves have long since dropped, the woods may seem featureless. Without leaves, it can feel nearly impossible to tell one species from another. But for those who take a ...

Way up in Maine, the land of abundant Christmas trees, it is still possible to go out into the woods and cut your own Christmas tree. You should still ask the landowner’s permission, of course. It is ...

When I was a kid, we always had a ceiling-high red cedar as a Christmas tree. Although they are prickly trees that can cause severe itching, they had one feature I particularly enjoyed. The week after ...

Using plant keys, or what are also commonly called dichotomous keys, is a useful way to identify plants. With the holidays upon us, if you have access to a live Christmas tree, you can get a taste of ...

There should always be a story to come out of your home about the Christmas tree. Where you got it. Bought it or harvested it. Decorating from bough to bough with years of family loved ornaments or ...

Next Thursday starts the new year of 2026. This is a perfect time to plant a tree. Trees can be planted at a resident, a park, a business or along a busy roadway. Trees have that calming effect on ...

One of the most memorable and meaningful Christmas Eve’s for me was the year I was abandoned at the public library. It was Monday, December 24, 1979. I was seven. The Baldwin Public Library is in the ...