What Happens to an Old Christmas Tree?

The wonderful world of vegetative recycling!

What happens after your Christmas tree is hauled away? Vegetative recycling is a fascinating subject and is a critical part of the junk removal infrastructure. When considering which junk removal company to hire, asking what kinds of landfill diversion resources they employ is a great thing. One of the most common recycling avenues is organic/vegetative recycling. Recycling organic materials is a great thing for customers, companies, and of course the environment. Let’s talk more about the process!

Pick Up:

Vegetative debris can be generated in all kinds of ways. Of course Christmas trees are one of the most common types of vegetative waste generated in December and January, however there are plenty of other ways vegetative debris can be generated. From bush trimmings to tree trunks, from leaves to limbs, all kinds of vegetative items can be recycled but to start their journey they have to be picked up.

This all starts with a local junk removal or tree company. Some times it is as simple as sending a few men and a truck to pick up the items. Other times, vegetative debris removal involves heavy machinery such as a skid steer in order to remove heavy items. Reputable removal companies make sure that once the vegetative items are loaded up, they promptly get to a local recycling facility.

Recycling Facilities

There are numerous vegetative recycling facilities in most communities. Some facilities are integrated into municipal landfill operations. In Dallas, Ga for example they have two separate areas for vegetative items and general junk/garbage on the same property. At the Marietta dump there is actually a separate privately owned facility (TAG grinding services) that is one mile away from the regular transfer station. Each of these facilities can collect and begin the process of recycling any vegetative debris. In general, these facilities do still charge haulers to allow them to unload. The only exceptions are made for logs. Generally logging yards and saw mills accept logs and may even pay the company who delivers them depending on the condition of the wood. Another option for free disposal that is available when disposing of hardwood logs or large limbs is finding a local firewood company. Generally firewood companies love to have hardwood logs dropped off on their lot to process them into firewood. Just make sure to call ahead to ensure someone is there and that they have space on their lot.

Once at these facilities, there are a few ways that the vegetative debris are processed. At many municipal and private recycling facilities, the smaller vegetative items such as leaves, branches, bushes, and limbs are ground up into mulch. That mulch is then loaded up onto a semi truck and sent to a plant. More on that later. The logs at these facilities are generally loaded up and taken to logging yards or mills. Logs that end up in a logging yard are sorted and then transported to saw mills. The mills themselves process the logs into various lumber products.

See You Again Soon

Vegetative debris, from logs to leaves often times will go through this whole process to just see you again soon. Those large trucks full of raw mulch are then transported to facilities where the mulch is processed, dyed, and bagged. Those are the same bags that end up on the shelves in your local hardware store or in a large pile in your local landscape supply yard. Some landscape suppliers even do the whole mulching and dying process in house. One example is Wholesale Wood Products Incorporated in Atlanta, Georgia. Depending on where the logs go they can end up as dried firewood or can be milled into lumber products. Both of these options lead the vast majority of vegetative debris to end up back on the market as products that are beneficial to society.

It is critical to understand how these vegetative items can be diverted from the landfill because they recycling process can lead those items to be useful items again! At Up Up and Away Junk Hauling, we strive to make sure that all of the items we remove, including vegetative waste, are delivered to the proper facility so that recycling and repurposing can take place. When you take down your Christmas tree this year, think about how that same tree may turn into the mulch you put in the lawn in spring. Make sure it has the opportunity to do that by hauling a reputable local junk hauling company like Up Up and Away!