take two: christmas tree burning party

Now that Christmas is over, what will become of your tree? Some people think it's good luck to leave it up until the New Year. Others strip their trees immediately, apparently having had their fill of pine needles and the awkward rearrangement of the living room furniture. No matter when you plan to take your tree down, consider doing what Elizabeth and her friends did last year, and turn your tree disposal into a party.

Keep reading after the jump to find out exactly how she and her friends used their Christmas trees to fuel a festive bonfire, complete with bongo drums and s'mores.

Yes, Christmas Past is now just a ghost, but the spirit of the Yule log was alive and well at the Christmas tree burning party my friends Rob and Kevin threw. Some 50 people gathered on Dockweiler Beach at sunset to set fire to the cut conifers that had reigned over their living rooms just days before. Now dried out and denuded of their decorations, each one lit up like a Christmas tree as pyro-happy revelers threw them one after another onto the party's towering inferno of a bonfire.

During the brief intermissions between trees, kids roasted marshmallows for s'mores and waved at the jetliners climbing into the sky from adjacent LAX while the drum circle around the bonfire banged on their bongos (silent night it was not). With especially dehydrated trees nearly exploding into a mushroom cloud of smoke and two-story flames, the evening doubled as a lesson in fire safety for those tempted to skimp on watering next year's Douglas firs till Santa Claus comes back to town.

P.S. Kids, don't try this at home: Dockweiler Beach has designated outdoor fire pits, but burning trees in your fireplace is extremely dangerous; dry trees can burn out of control in less than a minute and produce residue that can catch fire inside your chimney.

Also, don't be tempted to re-create this on your lawn. Backyard bonfires are not just illegal in many places but also unsafe, since embers carried by an errant breeze can spread the fire to nearby grass or brush before you can say Father Christmas. If you don't have a designated bonfire area near you, it's probably best to leave the books, flags, bras and trees be and recycle your tannenbaum instead.

All photos by Jason Rohrbacker

Comments

My Cousin has a tree burning party EVERY year and it is sooo much fun
I think everybody should try it

What's with the south coast air quality district and waste management entities? Missing a great opportunity to create tree mulch? Prefer air pollution for the basin instead? Why not have a bonfire for all, while collecting the majority of trees for the wood chipper?

Tree burning could lead to forest fires, then Father Christmas will be looking down at you from heaven saying "why is it that THEY must cause so much damage around Christmas!

I was at the Xmas 2008/Jan 2008 burn. When is this year's? -James