A well placed real Christmas Tree can provide a spectacular, sustainable and memorable focal point for festive celebrations in towns and cities across the UK.
A thoughtfully designed Christmas display with a prominent tree at its heart, helps bring communities and visitors together, creating a welcoming and vibrant environment. A statuesque tree effortlessly becomes the centre of seasonal activity, providing a visual backdrop to musical performances, late night shopping, specialist markets and attracts more residents and visitors into local high streets.
“Making a real British Christmas Tree the centrepiece of your town’s festive celebrations can transform a town centre,” said Chair of the British Christmas Tree Growers Association (BCTGA), Russell Parkins.
“Structured seasonal events, such as a Christmas Tree light switch-on, create a valuable opportunity to bring communities and visitors together, encourage more footfall to local businesses and create a welcoming, vibrant environment,” Russell said.
There are many towns and cities across the country which have turned their Christmas Tree light switch-on into an annual event marking the start of the festive season for their community. Creating a shared moment which can then grow into a wider programme of seasonal events, foster local pride, strengthen community engagement and support retail activity.
But to create maximum impact and be able to build this strong foundation for its seasonal offer, selecting the right Christmas Tree is crucial for councils and town centre managers.
“To achieve a high-quality and impactful display, there is no better starting point than engaging with suppliers of UK grown Christmas Trees,” said Russell.
Working with UK Growers and Choosing the Right Tree
The BCTGA represents British Christmas Tree growers and, through its annual Wholesale List, a directory of its members supplying the wholesale industry, provides a valuable resource for councils and town managers.
The Wholesale List, updated each year, helps identify reputable growers, many of whom specialise in providing trees for public displays at scale. Working directly with growers, also allows councils to access practical advice on species selection, sizing, installation and any traceability documentation required.
Choosing a British grown Christmas Tree is choosing to support a sustainable crop which is part of a carefully managed cycle of planting, pruning, fertilising and harvesting, Russell explained.
Trees are not taken from woodland or unmanaged forests, professional growers across the country specifically cultivate trees for seasonal use, managing plantations over many years to produce consistent, well-shaped specimens suitable for everything from small decorative displays to large-scale civic installations.
The BCTGA stresses that selecting the right species is essential to creating a successful seasonal centrepiece. For outdoor civic displays, it said the Norway Spruce remains the most widely used option, valued for its traditional appearance and classic conical shape as well as being cost effective in larger sizes.
One of the most well-known is the 18ft Christmas Tree which stands outside one of the most prestigious addresses in the country – 10 Downing Street. Each year this tree is provided by the Champion Grower of the Year, chosen at the BCTGA National Grower’s Championship, a tradition which began in 1982.
For indoor settings such as civic buildings or covered retail areas, the BCTGA said Nordmann Fir is often preferred due to its excellent needle retention and fuller, softer appearance, which makes it more suitable for indoor environments and longer display periods.
The indoor Christmas Tree displayed at the Foreign Office is also provided by a winner at the BCTGA’s National Grower’s Championship.
The BCTGA said professional growers are perfectly placed to offer advice and guidance on which will be the best species for the setting and its members are committed to ensuring buyers get a tree that fits both the setting and the intended visual impact.
Large Display Trees: Practicalities, Safety and Long-Term Planning
The majority of civic displays will feature a large tree, often reaching up to 10 metres, acting as a visual anchor for the festive activity.
These stunning, sustainably harvested, large display trees represent decades of committed growing. A single specimen may have taken up to 30 years to mature, with pruning, fertilising and ground maintenance needed throughout that period. Specialist expertise and equipment is needed to harvest, transport and install trees of this size and, when considering options for your town centre, it is important to understand why specimens this size are cut, rather than container trees.
A container grown or root balled growing tree, will rarely exceed 2 metres in height (including the pot), which can make them unsuitable for the scale needed for civic displays.
However, some councils may find investing in a living tree as part of the longer-term landscape plan would work all year round. With the right care, a planted tree can grow by 1 to 2 feet per year although this approach does need forward planning, ongoing maintenance and active management to ensure the tree reaches and then remains the right size for its setting.
A sustainably harvested, cut tree offers important operational advantages. It arrives ready to install each year, removing the need for ongoing maintenance, long-term space allocation or specialist care. It also allows the space to be used flexibly for other activities throughout the year, rather than being permanently occupied.
Wider Impact: Sustainability, Local Economy and Community Value
While a container grown or root balled growing tree may feel like a more sustainable choice, a UK grown cut tree has spent years sustaining native wildlife and eco systems as part of the plantation.
As they operate within a continuous cycle of planting and harvesting, Christmas Tree plantations provide a valuable service to biodiversity and carbon capture. Each tree absorbs carbon dioxide as it grows, contributing to soil health and supporting oxygen release. Once harvested, new seedlings are planted – up to 10 seedlings replace each harvested tree - maintaining the sustainability of the crop.
These plantations not only perform a vital contribution to the connectivity of our rural landscapes but the overall biodiversity of arable areas. The mix of tree sizes across growing sites due to the consistent replanting provides valuable habitats for birds, mammals and invertebrates, supporting our native wildlife all year round.
And it is not only our wildlife that benefits, equally important is the role UK tree production plays in supporting rural economies.
The sector is largely made up of family-run farms which have diversified and small enterprises which have seen a sustainable marketplace. By sourcing locally, councils can help sustain jobs, skills and investment in these communities, while also reducing their carbon footprint and the impact long transportation can have on the environment.
“This alignment between environmental responsibility, economic support and community benefit makes British-grown trees a strong choice for public sector buyers,” Russell said.
Funding, Sponsorship and Supporting the High Street
Russell said the BCTGA is very aware of the ongoing pressure on public budgets and that many councils are finding success through partnership approaches to festive displays.
Bringing local businesses, trade organisations or community groups in through the sponsorship of large civic trees is now common practice and a great way to foster community ownership and pride.
As well as providing cost relief, working in collaboration with other key stakeholders in the community offers positive visibility and opportunities to engage with relevant audiences. This way of working can be extended into the accompanying activities, helping to create a more vibrant and inclusive programme.
Providing ‘pop up’ Christmas Tree retail space can further support town centres. With purchasing a Christmas Tree increasingly becoming a key part of family festive celebrations and a staple on social media channels, a dedicated, temporary retail space can significantly increase footfall and dwell time, encouraging visitors to spend more time and money supporting surrounding shops, cafés and businesses.
A fully immersive festive experience can be achieved with the addition of smaller trees, perhaps sponsored by local businesses, placed alongside the main display. They can line the high street, decorate public squares, bring some sparkle to transport hubs or sit outside individual businesses. These smaller installations can be a lovely way to guide visitors through the town, encourage exploration and extend the benefits of seasonal footfall more widely.
Planning Ahead for Successful Displays
Early planning and strong collaboration are the key to successful festive displays. The BCTGA would encourage councils to get in touch with growers well in advance to talk through what they would like to achieve, and to secure the right tree for the best possible result. This is particularly important for larger installations where availability may be limited.
“Speaking directly to the grower early in the process, gives time for a full discussion and the opportunity to use growers’ expertise on species, sizing, installation requirements and logistics, as well as any documentation that needs to be provided to support the procurement processes,” said Russell.
“A beautifully decorated real Christmas Tree will not only create the perfect focal point to seasonal activities but integrate into a programme of festive events as well as helping to play a vital role in supporting biodiversity and rural ecosystems all year round,” he said.
- The BCTGA’s annual wholesale list, published at the start of August, provides a useful starting point for identifying suppliers and planning purchases. To register your interest in the 2026 directory and to find out more about sustainably grown UK Christmas Tree growers go to: bctga.co.uk
Why Councils Should Choose BCTGA Grown Trees
- Sustainability and Biodiversity: British grown, real Christmas trees help reduce transport emissions and support local wildlife habitats. Their harvest is offset by replanting – up to 10 seedlings replace each 6ft harvested tree. A large tree sustainably harvested will have contributed to carbon capture and wildlife habitats for around 30 years.
- Support Rural Economies: Purchasing from British growers sustains family farms, small enterprises and local economies, particularly in rural regions.
- Creativity Meets Practicality: Species such as Norway Spruce, Nordmann Fir, Fraser Fir, Lodgepole Pine, Noble Fir, Douglas Fir, Blue and Serbian Spruce offer a wide variety of choices in shape, needle retention, scent and price.
- Large Scale, High Quality Supply: Many BCTGA members specialise in supplying large display trees, perfect for civic centres, shopping districts and community installations. The 2026 BCTGA Wholesale List is a great place to find a sustainable, responsible UK grower.
Species Spotlight
A range of species allows planners to choose trees suited to their specific context:
- Norway Spruce: Classic cone shape, affordable and ideal for outdoor use.
- Nordmann Fir: The UK’s favourite, great needle retention, symmetrical branches for heavier ornaments.
- Fraser Fir: These trees have great fragrance with dark green needles which are silvery underneath. Good needle retention and pyramid shaped strong branches which turn upward.
- Noble Fir: Ideal for great needle retention and fresh fragrance. With bluish-green needles and short, stiff branches it is great for heavier ornaments, and it keeps well.
- Douglas Fir: Probably the strongest scent of all Christmas trees, it is very popular in the USA. A true fir with great shape but a little harder to decorate with baubles as the foliage is usually much denser.
- Blue Spruce: Beautiful, unique blue colouring, this tree has good stiff branches, great for hanging heavy decorations.
- Lodgepole Pine: A low needle-drop tree with beautiful tapering branches that rarely loses its needles if well hydrated. The needles are green/yellow in colour. This is the traditionalists Christmas Tree.
- Serbian Spruce: Tall and slender with graceful upswept branches. It has glossy dark green needles with slender streaks of white. This a very good ornamental alternative tree.