Tuamgraney trees for rent this yuletide

WITH Christmas fast approaching, people’s thoughts are turning towards creating the perfect festive atmosphere at home. The Christmas tree is the centrepiece for most homes but what if you want a live tree without it being cast away at the end of the season?
East Clare couple Tristan and Jennifer Lienhard have come up with a novel idea where people can ‘rent’ a tree.
Tristan, from Tuamgraney explained that they deliver a potted tree to your door with its own automatic watering system. Then, in January, they collect the tree and replant it in their nursery for use the following year. People can even track their tree, by tagging it to ensure that they receive the same tree year after year.
“We came up with the idea last year and it went really well so we decided to do it again this year. It’s a really simple idea and we were amazed that nobody else seemed to be doing it. We were just thinking that we like to have a live Christmas tree but we never liked the idea of having it chopped down.
“We started toying with the idea of having a live tree potted in the home just for ourselves. We are in landscaping so we could keep it in the nursery. Then a few people said they might enjoy having one and it just went from there. It was a huge amount of work to do so close to Christmas last year but it went really well and people really seemed to like the novelty of it,” he said.
Last year, they supplied over 200 trees in the Clare region and this year they have expanded to offering delivery and collection across most of the southern counties.
He explained that the delivered tree is simple to maintain.
“There is a special watering system, which keeps it fresh and it’s just a matter of keeping it refilled until we come and collect it in January. Then we just put the tree back into the nursery and look after it until next year.”
Many people are already looking for their same tree back this year. “Because it arrives with a tag on, we can give people the same tree again and again. We can get six or seven years out of one tree, rather than just one Christmas. It’s been very nice looking after the trees through the year and we can see on the tag where they’ve been to.”
“Not many people are doing this but it’s an idea that has started to pick up. When we started doing it and started researching last year, we only came across three people world wide doing something similar. This year there are 12.”
While the cost of a rented tree is more expensive than your standard Christmas tree, Tristan explained this also covers delivery to the home and removal. “The price of the tree itself isn’t much more expensive than what you would buy on the street but the delivery makes it a little more expensive. You don’t have to worry about how you’re going to get the tree home. And of course, we pick it up as well. We say that we deliver to your door but in actual fact most of the time, I bring it right into the living room,” he laughed.
For more details check www.rentalivechristmastree.com or phone Tristan direct on 087 953 7773.