As the holiday season comes to a close, Christmas trees purchased in early December may look a little less fresh. There are plenty of ways to dispose of trees, but few benefit rescue animals.
Rather than taking your tree to the landfill, you can give it new purpose at Mitten Misfits Farm Sanctuary in Grand Ledge.
The sanctuary, run by Victoria and Bob Worthy, took off in 2020. While they’d fostered farm animals in the years prior, the facility now houses dozens of rescues.
Of the around a hundred animals on site right now, Bob Worthy estimates they have 14 sheep and 20 goats.
While their pot-bellied pigs may take an occasional nibble from a Christmas tree, the sheep and goats are the hungriest for the pine needles.
“We throw it or drag it into their pasture, and then they really do go crazy on it,” Worthy said. "They eat all the green components."
According to Worthy, every piece of the tree is put to use.
The needles provide the herd with much needed Vitamin C, the sap acts as a natural de-wormer and the trunk and branches are broken down into wood chips to line pathways and bedding.
“It's so elegant,” Worthy said. “It's like picking a flower. You can enjoy it, and then, as it starts to decay, you can feed it to an animal, and they can get nutrition from it.”
Worthy said the sanctuary receives anywhere from 250 to 300 trees each year, some from family homes and local businesses, but many from large retailers like Lowe’s and Home Depot that have excess stock.
“It's nutrition for the goats that we don't have to purchase, and that helps us out," Worthy said. “We have to ask for donations for everything we do, so it's great nutrition for them, and it’s stuff that would be thrown away otherwise.”
Worthy stressed that trees treated with fire retardant can’t be accepted, and that all lights, ornaments and other decorations must be removed before trees are dropped off.
If any of the lights from the tree are broken or no longer working, don’t just throw them out. The Potter Park Zoo in Lansing accepts holiday lights through January for free recycling.
The lights will be separated into individual parts, and everything from the bulbs to the copper wiring can be reused.
All funds raised from the recycled materials will go towards the zoo’s Wonderland of Lights next year.