Here we are surrounded by a dead or dying forest of native spruce trees and the thought of going forth and cutting down the few decent ones is a sorry thought indeed.

Use some common sense, a gift in itself that we all inherently possess but seldom hone.

Look for trees that are in power line right of ways, or the path of a new road. Trees that would otherwise lose their right to be just by being in the wrong place at the wrong time. Little did they know.

There are those trees that are crowded, you've seen them, three growing so very close together that they look like one. Well by taking one you will have a very lopsided tree but you can most certainly put it up against a wall and no one will be the wiser. The trees in the clump that are left would thank you as they will have room to spread out.

Then there is the question of just exactly where you can go to cut this tree. If you have a sizable piece of property you can make a choice of a young tree that is being crowded by others and will end up stunted, so it may as well grace your living room for a few weeks. Or perhaps you have friends that will allow you to cut a tree.

The Department of Natural Resources, Division of Forestry have designated areas to cut trees, finding those areas is the trick. They sent me a map, that is not on the Internet, and here is my interpretation of where you can go forth and cut a tree without trespassing on private property: Take the entrance nearest Homer of the Old Sterling Highway, drive a few miles, park and start walking until you intuit that you are on state land. Alternatively you can drive 19 miles out East End Road, take a left on Circle Lake Road (we never called it Circle Lake Road when we lived out there. It was always referred to as the road to Van's Pond), drive to the new gravel pit (that is gated) the road veers to the right with Eagle Lake about a quarter mile on your left. Again, start walking until that old state land feeling overcomes you. The state giveth and you may taketh, if you can find it, a tree that is.

Oh, and don't forget, once you find that state land: "...stay 100 feet from trails, lakes and streams. Use for your personal use only. Cut trees close to the ground. "

It is possible to actually buy a commercially grown tree, imported from Outside. This is really not such a bad idea. It would eliminate any guilt that you may have regarding the cutting of a live tree in a damaged forest. If you go this route be sure to take a fresh cut off the bottom of the tree. The initial cut has callused over and the tree will not take up water. A fresh cut will encourage the tree to take a much needed drink.

Whether a fresh cut tree or one shipped in, it will need to be watered daily. Use a stand that will hold at least a gallon of water. Keep in mind that a well-watered tree will hold its needles longer, making it a welcome guest through the holiday season rather than a pile of brown, shed needles.

Or, are you one of those people who dug up a reasonable sized tree this fall and potted it up? I am always and forever amazed by those who have such foresight. Congratulations. Be sure to bring them inside as late into the season as you can wait and get them back out as soon as you can get the decorations off. They really want to be outside. Good luck with this and let me know how they fare in the coming growing season.

Or you can skip the tree altogether and use one of your houseplants. Look around. Really. What about that ficus? Its been filling the corner of your living room for eons and is probably all dusty and looking worse for wear. Drag it out of the corner and give it a good shower, literally. When the foliage is nice and dry, why not adorn it with tiny white lights and some little ornaments? Bring it center stage and make it a Christmas tree.

How about your holiday cactus? It is going to be blooming at just about the perfect time (at least mine is, dare I assume that yours is following suit?). Now is the time to give it a shower so the leaves are bright green and shiny. If you wait until it is in full bloom you will knock off the blooms, over water the soil and the whole thing will turn into a sorry sight. Act now for success.

How about those little tiny junipers that you can buy in the grocery store? They are so cute. They will fit perfectly on a table top, can be lit and decorated. All the requirements for a Christmas tree except in miniature. You can put them outside every summer, giving them bigger pots as needed. Maybe, with our obviously changing climate, they will even make it outside year around. Sounds good to me.

Now that I have a grove of mountain ash trees I am dazzled by the berries. I brought some inside over Thanksgiving and, although frozen, they did not change much as they thawed. I am considering using them as decorations on the Christmas tree this year. There will be plenty left for the bohemian waxwings that flock to these trees every winter

Get creative. A tree may not be the only answer.