SCOTT SHALAWAY The & quot;real & quot; deal makes for memories

Nothing beats the earthy fresh scent of an evergreen in December. It awakens my olfactory memory; images from Christmases past stream through my brain. Large family gatherings at grandparents' homes from both sides of the family figure prominently in these memories. It was a time when cousins were more like siblings.
Maybe this is why I insist on always having a real Christmas tree. I'd like my daughters to have the same kind of memories 30 years from now.
Welcome info: So I welcomed a press release from the Penn State News Service this week. The headline read, "Why It's Good To Buy A Real Christmas Tree." Penn State's College of Agricultural Sciences offered several reasons why real Christmas trees are politically and environmentally correct.
First, growing trees, like all plants, produce oxygen, so we can all breathe easier. Christmas tree farms in the United States provide the daily oxygen needs for about 18 million people.
Second, real trees are a natural, renewable resource, so they don't require fossil fuels to produce. And for every tree cut, two or three seedlings are planted to replace it. Artificial trees, on the other hand, require a fuel-burning manufacturing process. Furthermore, according to the National Christmas Tree Association (www.realchristmastrees.org), most artificial trees are made in China, Taiwan, or Hong Kong.
Wildlife benefit: Third, Christmas tree farms benefit wildlife. While a monoculture evergreen forest may not be as beneficial for wildlife as natural woodlands, even a pine plantation stabilizes soils and provides nest habitat and escape cover for birds and small mammals.
Finally, buying a real Christmas tree is great for the economy. More than 15,000 Christmas tree growers employ approximately 100,000 people, produce 34 million trees each year, and drive a $1.2 billion annual industry.
Real Christmas trees can also provide valuable lessons in botany. Most evergreens are members of one of three groups -- pines, spruces, or firs. Many people lump them all together as pines, but the correct collective term is conifer. Needle-bearing evergreens bear naked seeds on the scales of their cones. Hence the term conifer.
Pines (members of the genus Pinus) have needles grouped in bundles called fascicles. A protective sheath of tissue surrounds the base of each fascicle, which contains one to eight needles depending on the species. For example, white pine, a common native species, has five long soft needles per fascicle.
Spruces (genus Picea), on the other hand, bear single, stiff, sharp needles that originate from a small woody peg-like base. These pegs remain after the needles shed and give branches a warty appearance. Spruce cones hang, pendant fashion, from branches -- another good identifying characteristic.
Popular tree: Blue spruces make popular Christmas trees because of their color and classic shape, but their prickly needles make them difficult to handle. A pair of leather work gloves makes carrying a spruce a more manageable task.
Firs (genus Abies) also bear single needles, but they are softer than spruce needles, and they arise directly from the branch. The bottom part of each fir needle is expanded and looks like a suction cup. And unlike spruces, fir cones sit erect, reaching skyward from their branches.
A real tree can also be used for months after the holiday. Place it in the backyard to provide ground feeding birds protective cover from snow and wind and safe haven from bird-eating hawks and cats. Then cast white millet and black-oil sunflower seeds under the outer branches for a cheap, safe bird feeder.
Last reason: One last reason to favor a real tree over an artificial one is that it can provide a priceless family memento. To commemorate each of my daughters' first Christmas, I cut a slice of that year's tree from its trunk, dried it for several months, and then inscribed the year. These are now among the family's favorite tree ornaments and ones both Nora and Emma will treasure for years.
If your choice for a Christmas tree comes down to real versus artificial, there's really no choice at all. Real trees make memories that last a lifetime.
sshalaway@aol.com.