A tree is not just for Christmas…

PEOPLE will be able to “rent” Christmas trees under a scheme that aims to reduce the number of cut trees which are thrown away every January.

The hire scheme provides people with a pruned and potted Christmas tree for the festive period, before it is collected in the new year and replanted to be rented out the following Christmas.

Once the tree grows too big for homes, it will be planted in sites including schools and nursing homes, where it will absorb a tonne of carbon, according to the Little Tree Company.

Figures suggest some six million real Christmas trees are dumped after the festive season each year, only 10 per cent of which are recycled for composting and wood chipping with the rest ending up in landfill.