Which is better for the environment: an artificial Christmas tree or a natural one?

none is the correct answer

Depends. If you use the same artificial tree for decades then its probably better than buying a real tree every year.

But if you buy an artificial tree but keep replacing it every few years then it would be better to use real trees.

Difficult question. We have had the same plastic tree for years, but that tree took resources to make and to be shipped to our house. My guess is that a locally grown real tree is probably the best, if the most difficult.

natural one we have in our garden outside.

so choice is very simple here

Natural ones are farmed. When done they return to nature if disposed of properly. Plastic trees stay with us basically forever. Relatively simple answer.

Artificial ones can be used year after year. But they lack the wonderful smell of a real tree. On the other hand, although Xmas trees are farmed, it really seems wasteful to see them used for a relatively short amount of time then thrown out as garbage. But they are natural and will decompose unlike artificial trees.

Christmas itself has evolved from a religious day to a mass marketing season and one wonders whether it is worth maintaining an old tradition.

Natural ones are farmed. When done they return to nature if disposed of properly. Plastic trees stay with us basically forever. Relatively simple answer.

I agree.

None is the only answer... first tree then the plastic lights with music maker, then the never ending electricity consumption so that all the neighbours can share your joyous waste. So they all do the same thing .. bigger tree more lights, where is the joy in all of that???

Depends on how long you use the artificial one. When I was little, we had an artificial Christmas tree that lasted my entire childhood. A real tree is great but hard to maintain (the sap and pine needles get everywhere) and unless there's a dedicated service or place where you can safely dispose of your tree after the holidays to get it recycled, it does seem a shame to get one for the handful of weeks just to pretty up your home.

I'd say natural. It's not like they cut down a forest to get them, they're farmed. For the 8 or so years it takes them to reach maturity, they've been gulping CO2 out of the air. Then a new tree will be planted to replace them.

The artificial one can last you decades. That's got to be better if you can store it that long.

The "natural" trees are almost certainly given fertilizer and pesticides that are not zero emission.

Christmas itself has evolved from a religious day to a mass marketing season and one wonders whether it is worth maintaining an old tradition.

Wow. Speechless. Speak for yourself, Sir. You keep with your traditions and perhaps try to respect other people's traditions.

Real ones and they don't have to just be thrown out when you're done with them.

https://www.feedandgrain.com/sustainability/article/15661209/repurposing-old-christmas-trees-as-livestock-feed#:~:text=Many%20local%20farms%20accept%20real,and%20cost%20savings%20for%20farmers.&text=As%20January%20progresses%2C%20more%20Christmas,disposing%20of%20their%20decorative%20trees.

https://www.arborday.org/perspectives/8-sustainable-ways-recycle-your-christmas-tree

https://weather.com/safety/winter/news/2018-12-03-eco-friendly-ways-to-get-rid-of-christmas-tree

It depends on the environment. I used to buy natural Xmas trees at Yokosuka years ago. But after trying to get needles out of my car's carpet, out of the elevator, and off the floor of my house every year I broke down and bought an artificial one. We've had it up for about 20 Christmases so far. The kicker is that even the artificial one is starting to shed needles now.

I said don't know because no answer is actually available.

The answer is:

It depends on who and where they live.

In my home country a lot of tree farms and recycling of the trees after Christmas, so in that case natural farmed trees are a better choice.

But if you live in a place where the natural trees are shipped in from extremely far away, the trees are taken from natural growth wild etc... then a reusable artificial trees is better and seeing you will be using it for several years or more get an environmentally friendlier type.

Artificial trees made of only wood, needles are also made of wood material with natural dyes are great, they may not last as long as wire and plastic, but they are biodegradable and or can be safely incinerated and yes they are more expensive bit they also look better and more realistic.

Nothing compares with the natural look, but especially, the natural smell and presence of a real pine tree. There is something that makes the Christmas more real, by using a real tree, compared to the artificial, plastic one, that makes everything so comercial and soulless.