Traditionally, real Christmas trees are a central element of the festive season. However, increasing awareness of environmental issues and the tangible consequences of climate change are leading to a rethink. More and more people are looking for ways to make their lives more sustainable and environmentally friendly without having to go back to the Stone Age.
The Dresden-based start-up "Dresdener Holzbengel" shows that even very traditional areas of life will probably not be spared from these far-reaching changes in the future. They have declared war on the waste associated with the traditional (coniferous) Christmas tree and developed a real alternative: the wooden Christmas tree.
Instead of cutting down a living tree and then watching it dry out, the wooden Christmas tree does away with the need to cut down trees for festive decorations. All the wood used comes from sustainable forestry around Dresden. The tree slices, for example, are taken from trees that are felled due to land consolidation or forest maintenance. "Every time one of our partners cuts down a tree that meets our requirements, they call us. No extra trees are felled. This not only eliminates the need for long transportation routes, but in future it could also mean that the huge monocultures that grow the 31 million firs and spruces that are consumed every year in Germany alone can be dispensed with," says Managing Director Martin Erler.
