By Nancy Penrose
With the holidays now past, the one thing we tend to postpone is taking down the lights from outdoor trees. For some, they love how it makes their home feel warm and magical during the winter months. For others, they don’t want to undo all the hard work it took to put the lights up for a while, which brings us to the question: should you keep outdoor tree lights on year-round? And if so, how to do it safely.
Can You Keep Outdoor Tree Lights on All Year?
The quick answer is: you can leave your outdoor lights on your trees year-round if you want to, although we suggest removing outdoor tree lights around the beginning of Spring. Whether you decide to keep them up for four months or 12, it is important to know how to safely keep your lights on your outdoor trees. Here are our tips:
1. Use LED lights. They can withstand extreme weather shifts and won’t get damaged by too much sun or rain. Plus, they’re energy efficient, which will be very beneficial for yearlong use.
2. Only use lights that are made for outdoor use because they are designed to resist cold and wet weather.
3. Avoid wrapping lights around young trees. Younger trees don’t have as much strength compared to an older tree to carry the weight of holiday decorations.
4. It’s best not to wrap trees tightly with lights, especially if they’re still growing. As trees grow, the string lights can become very tight around the trunk and branches, which can cause damage.
Those are some of our tips! If you have any questions, feel free to contact Big Trees at (866) 313-2333 and we would be happy to answer them for you.
Nancy Penrose is owner of Big Trees Inc. (http://www.bigtreesupply.com), (tree nursery Snohomish, WA), one of the largest Seattle tree nurseries, specializing in large trees for sale and transplant tree service. Learn more about tree preservation at http://bigtreesupply.com/tree-care-maintenance/ and for more tips on tree care or installation go to privacytree.net. See our video at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A6vVhNW1XJI and connect with us on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/pages/Big-Trees-Inc/193731105108.