Did You Know….

Christmas trees use toxic pesticides and synthetic fertilizers for years before harvesting. According to the Center for Biological Diversity, eight pesticides make up 85 percent of all uses on Christmas trees: chlorothalonil, atrazine, simazine, glyphosate, hexazinone, carbaryl, chlorpyrifos, and dimethoate. These chemicals have numerous adverse health effects, including cancer, hormonal (endocrine) disruption, neurotoxicity, organ damage, reproductive/birth defects, asthma, and more. Furthermore, North Carolina State University finds a majority of conventional Christmas tree farms in North Carolina use the prevalent weedkiller glyphosate (Roundup), and the insecticide bifenthrin to treat 97.5 and 42.9 percent of all tree acres, respectively. The World Health Organization (WHO) classifies glyphosate as “probably carcinogenic to humans.”

Pine needles and bark can harbor pesticide residues that are not only toxic to humans but pets as well. The most widely used pesticide in Christmas tree production, glyphosate, is systemic and plant roots and leaves absorb the chemical into the vascular system. These chemicals can leach out in sap (guttation) and contaminate tree water, thus exposing curious children and pets to toxic chemicals if playing around the tree or, in the case of animals, drinking the water.

Read more at Beyond Pesticides. They have some online resources to help you find some organic trees in your area…

https://beyondpesticides.org/dailynewsblog/2020/12/its-beginning-to-look-a-lot-like-an-organic-christmastree/