You too can be a “celebi-tree” owner this Christmas just like Louis Tomlinson with a tree from Pines and Needles.
Pines and Needles are arguably Britain’s best-loved Christmas Tree company, and over the years have supplied some of the biggest celebrities such as Madonna, David Tennant, Noel Gallagher and Sir Elton John and even royalty with trees. They supplied their royal highnesses the Duke and Duchess of Sussex with a Christmas tree in 2016, the newly engaged royal couple, at the time, was seen shopping at the companies Battersea Park store.
One of our fave things about the company is how they make the Christmas tree picking experience a truly magical experience, no matter if you buy online or in one of the stores. Although buying in-store is a tiny bit more special as you are greeted with Kilts and Santa hats and some of the friendliest staff who all want you pick the perfect tree.
Louis Tomlinson became a fan of the company when purchased a tree for his home in London a few years ago.
Pines and Needles were founded by brothers Josh and Sam Lyle back in 1995. It all started when the youngsters (then aged 15 and 13) came up with the brainwave of loading an old horsebox with Christmas trees from their family farm in Scotland and taking the long journey down to London.
This year the company has vowed to do its bit for the environment and ditch the plastic and sell only real trees.
They have also offered some tips on how to care for your trees:
Prepare the trunk?
Just before you install your tree, saw off the bottom 1” (3cm) of the trunk. This creates a fresh cut and opens up the pores in the bark, which otherwise can block up with sap within a few hours of being cut. The tree is then able to drink water through these pores via capillary action. We do this to all our trees so you don’t have to!?
They need routine
Do not expose your tree to sudden changes in temperature. Trees like most people are creatures of habit and prefer steady conditions.
Keep it away from any heat sources
Position your Christmas tree away from any heat sources such as radiators and fireplaces. Heat dries out your tree faster, so the further from potentially damaging heat sources the better, and the fresher your tree will remain.
Water your tree
Place your tree in plain water – not soil or sand which would block the pores in the bark. This is best achieved by using a specially designed?Christmas tree stand. Many precious hours can be wasted trying to make a Christmas Tree stand up straight in an ordinary bucket using just bricks or stones!
Then keep on watering it
Keep the Christmas tree stand topped up with water. Your Christmas tree may drink 2-3 pints (1-2 litres) of water per day, depending on its size and your central heating settings. This is very important as once the water level drops below the tree’s trunk, sap will re-seal the bark within a few hours, preventing the tree from drinking any further water even if you then re-fill the Christmas tree stand.?
Just like Louis, company founders Josh and Sam are big on giving back to charity and, they use the season of goodwill to support a foundation which is run by one of their regular magical Christmas helpers Juan Antuña Ros, who every festive season manages one of their stores. Juan’s social enterprise HDLF (Human Development & Language Foundation).
The HDLF focuses on building schools in poor rural villages, training Cambodians to become English teachers and supporting graduates with university scholarships and job opportunities. Last year, the Pines & Needles stores team and their customers were able to fundraise a whopping £10,479 which helped to fund employment and full university scholarships for two of its junior teacher trainees.
You can see all the trees Pines and Needles have and find out more about the company and all the work they do for charity on their website.