It’s time to have that great December debate once more: real or fake – Christmas trees, that is.
It’s no longer a simple choice. More and more “experts” seem to be telling us that buying a cut tree is bad for the environment.
It’s true that cutting down trees of any kind minimizes the level of oxygen that circulates in the air while increasing the level of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere (they release greenhouse gasses when they decompose). Christmas trees also take several years to grow, are almost immediately discarded and usually find their way to landfills.
But others, including the National Christmas Tree Association (naturally), tell us that real Christmas trees are actually better for the environment than fake trees. They say most plastic trees are only used for between six and nine years before they’re disposed of. Then they are thrown away and also end up in landfills, but unlike real trees, are not biodegradable.Whether you are a “real or fake” tree person, options to buy the traditional adornment abound in Guadalajara.
A favored spot for cut trees is Guadalajara’s most well-known Christmas market, the Jardin de San Jose on Avenida Alcalde (between Reforma and San Felipe, downtown Guadalajara), which apart from trees offers bows, tinsel, spheres, wooden mangers, wreaths, angels, guiding stars, cans of artificial snow, piñatas, paper lanterns, Santa figurines, blinking lights, personalized cards, moss, nativity scenes by the hundred – in fact, far more “stuff” than even Santa would need to decorate his grotto for the season.
An imported 1.8-meter Douglas Fir at the Jardin de San Jose will cost you around 400 pesos, while 2.2-meter-tall trees go for 600 pesos. A steady stream of motorists could be seen pulling up at the market this week, loading their trees on to the roofs of the vehicles to take home and decorate.
Other popular outdoor locations for Christmas goods in downtown Guadalajara are the Jardin de San Francisco, behind the San Francisco Church on Avenida 16 de Septiembre, and the Parque Morelos on the Calzada Independencia.
All the major supermarkets (including Soriana in Chapala and Wal-Mart in Ajijic) have real and fake trees on sale. Costs vary: a 1.80-meter tree at Wal-Mart on Guadalajara’s Niño Obrero retailed this week for 499 pesos, while at the Soriana store at Clouthier and Patria the going price was 399 pesos. Prices tend to come down the closer one gets to Christmas. Fake tree prices depend on their sophistication: Wal-Mart’s cheapest option is a 1.60-meter green tree for 169 pesos, while a larger and higher quality metallic silver or gold tree will set you back 1,299 pesos.
Another option is to rent a living pine tree and have it delivered to your doorstep.
Vive Pino has set up five locations in the city where seven-to-eight-year-old trees can be ordered. You can also book a tree online at www.vivopino.com.
A 2.20-meter tall tree rents for 1,200 pesos, and a 2.50-meter tree for 1,500 pesos. Collection of the tree takes place in the second week of January. A buying option is available for an extra fee.
Customers can also rent the same tree as the year before, if they wish.
Vive Pino’s locations are in the Parque Metropolitano, Plaza Andares, La Gran Plaza and Plaza Galerias.
DID YOU KNOW?
When did pine and fir trees come to represent the holiday season, and when did this peculiar symbol spread south to infiltrate Mexico’s Christmas consciousness?
The earliest mention of Christmas trees as we know them comes from the Black Forest of Germany about 400 years ago. Travelers report that inns had trees adorned with colored paper, apples and sweets. It is said that the trees represented a pagan belief that, as well as pleasing the spirits with their beauty, warmer days would soon come. Firs and pines were preferred for the resiliency of their green needles and their durability.
It was in the era of Martin Luther and the Reformists that Protestants adopted the custom of lighting the tree with candles. During the French-German War of 1870, William I of Germany ordered that Christmas trees be sent to his soldiers as a token of goodwill and encouragement.
It wasn’t until the 19th century that the trees were officially accepted as a Christmas symbol for Catholics, and since then the characteristic pine aroma has filled increasingly more Mexican homes each season.