There are many different types of Christmas trees to choose from. A long history involving the Christmas Tree amalgamates a few religions. You may want to purchase festive curtains and other items from stores such as Lowes Home improvement but let’s first look at some facts you may need to learn.
Pagan roots
The Christmas tree has a fascinating history that most likely dates back at least two millennia and is now regarded as a must-have adornment for many who celebrate Christmas and exchange gifts with loved ones every year. Christmas trees were not only admired and embellished by Christians. Expert in Christmas trees and ornaments at the British business Fantastic Gardeners. The custom started more than 2,000 years ago when pagans revered evergreen trees as a fertility emblem. Christmas tree decorating was first practiced in Latvia and other Eastern European nations between the 1500s and 1600s; later, the Germans picked up this custom.
Christmas tree lots
Entrepreneurial logger Mark Carr came up with a beautiful idea after learning that city dwellers often travel to the country for Christmas trees. He made the journey from the Catskills to New York City in 1851 with his boys and several dozen evergreen trees. Christmas tree lots were created when the haul was sold in less than a day.
Christmas trees used to hang upside down
If you notice a tree hanging upside-down from the ceiling, don’t panic. The Spruce claims that this fad indeed dates back to the Middle Ages. According to legend, a Benedictine monk explained the Holy Trinity to pagans using the triangle shape of the inverted tree. However, podazniczek, a Polish tradition in which people adorned the tree’s branches with fruit, nuts, and ribbons before hanging it from the ceiling, significantly boosted the concept in the 1900s in Poland.
Cherry Trees used to be Christmas Trees
The most often used Christmas trees are the Scotch pine, Douglas fir, Fraser fir, balsam fir, and white pine. According to Sandborn, some Europeans utilized cherry or hawthorn trees as their Christmas greens in the early days before everyone settled on firs and pines. These trees’ blossoms were what made them appealing. A branch could bloom in time for Christmas if you chopped it off, brought it inside, and placed it in a pot of water.
Queen Victoria popularised the Christmas tree
Even though by the early 1800s, rigid religious beliefs around Christmas trees had finally started to relax, it wasn’t until Queen Victoria, and the royal family was depicted next to the family’s fir tree in 1848 that they truly gained popularity in the English-speaking world. Victoria, whose mother was German, thought of Christmas as being celebrated with evergreens adorned with oranges, cloves, and cinnamon sticks. Because of how much the former colonies respected British nobility, Christmas trees eventually gained popularity in America.
There are so many interesting facts about the Christmas tree. Besides the ironically pagan roots, Christmas trees have become synonymous with the Christian Holiday Christmas. Many other non-religious cultures embrace celebrating once a year, decorating a Christmas Tree as a family, and opening gifts. Christmas trees, whatever their origin, have become a symbol of family, unity, and new beginnings. Enjoy choosing yours this year!