The Christmas Tree:
An age-old tradition

Few trees can match the stories and legends associated with it

By Michael Walsh

December 21, 2023

…freshly cut Christmas trees smelling of stars and snow and pine resin – inhale deeply and fill your soul with wintry night…

– John Geddes, A Familiar Rain

Do you, or someone you know, celebrate Christmas? If so, one probably follows the age-old tradition of cutting down a perfectly healthy tree, bringing it into their home and covering it with all types of decorations. Have you ever wondered where this tradition originated? Or, what makes this tree perfectly suited for the holiday season?

Many of us learned that the Christmas tree tradition originated in Germany, however, certain scholars argue that its origins date as early as the Roman Empire. During that period, houses were adorned with laurels and fruit-bearing trees such as cherry and apple. They believed that every Christmas Eve, these trees would blossom and form fruits.

Holy Glastonbury Thorn on the grounds of the former Glastonbury Abbey, UK • Image: Tom Ordelman, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

This custom also occurred in England, where it became associated with the story of St. Joseph of Arimathea. Legend tells us that in the town of Glastonbury, St. Joseph planted his staff that subsequently sprouted branches and leaves, and every Christmas Eve, the tree was covered in blossoms. Known as the Glastonbury Thorn (a type of hawthorn), descendants of the original tree were dispersed throughout England, each blossoming on Christmas Eve.

Weihnachtsbaum, Frankfurt Germany • Image: GuntramS, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

In 1752, the church calendar changed from the Old to New Style. This resulted in Christmas Eve, originally on January 5, now falling on December 24. That same year, the population of the town of Glastonbury gathered around St. Joseph’s original tree on Christmas Eve and observed that it did not blossom; however, on January 5, the original Christmas Eve, the tree’s blossoms opened and was covered in flowers.

This brings us to Germany, located amidst the mountains and boreal forest, where ever-green trees grow in abundance. In the 1600s, this was the birthplace of the Weihnachtsbaum – a tree brought indoors, covered in candles, coloured paper, painted egg shells, sweets, strips of foil, small cakes and toys. The tree’s splendour was revealed on Christmas Eve to the wonder and awe of all those present.

The legend of the Weihnachtsbaum tells the story of Martin Luther wandering during the night on a clear Christmas Eve. Observing the multitude of stars twinkling in the sky, he adorned a tree with candles for his children to mirror the heavenly skies.

The Christmas tree arrived in France in 1840 when  Helene of Mecklenburg introduced the tradition to the residents of Paris. Over the next several decades, tens of thousands of these trees adorned homes throughout the city.

Christmas in Wandsbeker Castle, Hamburg, German, 1830 • Image: Theobald von Oer, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

In 1840, Queen Victoria and Prince Albert adopted the Christmas tree tradition, which quickly spread throughout the British Isles.

Norway and Denmark adopted the tradition in the 1830s, followed by Finland and Sweden in the 1860s. German-speaking countries, such as Switzerland and Austria, quickly followed suit. By the late 1800s, Christmas trees adorned homes throughout North America and Russia.

Today, the holiday tree is a ubiquitous tradition for those who celebrate the Christmas season. They sit silently in their glory, festooned with lights and a myriad of decorations. Perhaps our reverence for these trees stems from a kinship, long forgotten, to woodland spirits that were believed to have resided in the ancient forests.

In fact, most of us are so transfixed with the lights and decorations that we rarely give the tree itself a second thought.

The traditional Christmas tree is a “confer” which implies that it has cones. It belongs to the Pinaceae family (commonly referred to as pines), which includes spruces, firs and pines.

Norway Spruce • Image: Ivar Leidus, CC BY-SA 3.0 EE, via Wikimedia Commons

Next time you are at the Christmas tree lot, selecting the type of tree is a simple matter. On examining the needles (modified leaves), spruces have sharp tips, firs have flat needles, and pines have their needles in bundles joined at the base by a modified leaf (called a fascicle). Chances are quite good that your tree will be a Norway spruce (Picea abies), which is the most popular species for the holiday season.

Interestingly, the needles and drooping conical shapes of conifers are quite unique. The former contains an anti-freeze protein that prevents cell damage during harsh winter conditions, and the latter allows the tree to shed snow that, if left to accumulate, would cause stem breakage.

The vast range of these trees is facilitated by their ability to grow in poor soil conditions. Since they do not shed their needles on a seasonal basis, the trees require fewer nutrients to maintain their growth. Some species are fire resistant (not fireproof), adapting to ground fires. They grow a thick bark along the trunk and have branches that don’t grow close to the ground. In addition, their cones only release seeds when exposed to fire, whereas others (such as the Whitebark pine) rely on specific birds and animals to open their cones and provide seed dispersal.

Bristlecone Pine Forest, White Mountains, California • Image: Rick Goldwaser from Flagstaff, AZ, USA, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Other species of this family hold several distinctions – one (still living) member of the Bristlecone pine has attained the age of 4,000 years, and the giant Sequoias can exceed a height exceeding 300 feet.

The very impressive avenue of Giant Sequoias at Benmore Botanic Garden, near Dunoon in Argyll, Scotland. Planted in 1863, these giants soar over 50 metres high • Image: Dougie Macdonald, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

One must admit, whether brought indoors and festooned with decorations or sitting silently in a forest, decorated with snow, few trees can match the stories and legends associated with the Christmas tree.

Feature image: Christmas Tree in Trafalgar Square, London, England, by Diliff, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Other articles by Michael Walsh
Other recent articles