A multiple Christmas tree trend is being pushed by (you guessed it) the folks in the business of selling Christmas trees.
What, you only buy one Christmas tree? How un-festive. That’s barely celebrating the holiday at all. Haven’t you heard that everybody gets two (or more) trees nowadays?
That’s the holiday message being spread by the American Christmas Tree Association (and reported on by the Orlando Sentinel). The tree association’s website notes:
Gone are the days when consumers were content with celebrating the holidays with just one Christmas tree as their festive focal point. Increasingly, consumers are choosing to purchase multiple Christmas trees, both real and artificial, to decorate more than one room in their home as well as their outdoor spaces.
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For obvious reasons, retailers selling trees are also happy to spread the idea that more than one evergreen is a must for the holidays. Lowe’s’ list of “8 Reasons to Decorate More Than One Christmas Tree” includes the suggestion that, if you have too many ornaments, instead of getting rid of some, the most sensible thing to do is just buy another tree:
After decorating your tree, you may be stuck with orphaned ornaments that don’t fit your tree’s design. A smaller Christmas tree may be the best way to put this mixed collection of ornaments and decorations to work.
USA Today, meanwhile, reports that major retailers are trying to attract the business of consumers who want real Christmas trees, but who’d rather skip the messy, time-consuming process of going out to pick one (or more) in person. Sears, Costco, and Target are among the stores that now sell freshly cut live trees online.
Sears, for instance, is accepting online orders for live trees through December 15. The trees come from the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina, and a seven-foot fraser fir will run $120 to $150, and free shipping’s included for the time being.
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I’m not going off on a limb here (no pun intended) to assume that Sears would be OK if you ordered more than one.
Brad Tuttle is a reporter at TIME. Find him on Twitter at @bradrtuttle. You can also continue the discussion on TIME’s Facebook page and on Twitter at @TIME.