Note: We’d like to know what holiday trees you want to learn about. Comments aare open to all.

We begin our holiday celebration at Our Trees with stories of many of the trees, from frankincense to pecans, that we consume at this time of year. From now until December 15, we will present two tree stories each week, on Tuesday and Sunday. We hope to enteer into discussions with you about these trees. For now, we’d like to hear from you about what trees you want us to cover.

As a gift to you, we are offering 30% off on all new paid subscriptions for a whole year. Please note that in coming days, some stories will only be availablt to paid subscribers.

The Holiday period in November and December brings us together to celebrate. These celebrations often involve festive foods that we don’t eat as much of the rest of the year. Growing up in Baltimore, one of my favorite holiday foods was chestnuts roasted in charcoal pans by street vendors. Think for a moment of all the varied food you eat at this time of year.

Many of these foods come from wild trees like frankincense, and some cultivated like coffee. Some of these trees are endangered in the wild, including frankincense and coffee. Some are near extinction and no longer available to consumers like American chestnut. Our Trees is presenting a special series of stories about trees we use at holidays with an emphasis on their futures. Some trees like frankincense are vulnerable to overharvesting and habitat loss. Other like cacao may become threatened by climate change. Still others like pecan trees are doing well in their southern forests.

It certainly helps us as responsible consumers who care about trees and forests to be aware of impacts of our use on the trees. It’s why, in an earlier story, I encouraged you to choose pecans over almonds.

Now, a quick response to learning that some trees are threatened is to say “Oh, let’s stop using it in our celebration.” In most cases, I think that is the wrong reaction. We tend to pay attention to, and conserve, trees that are of value to us. I’ll soon talk about the great efforts under way to restore the frankincense resources of Africa. These efforts require revenue to growers, and that revenue comes from selling their crop in a regulated market.

So let’s learn together about the trees we are using in this holiday season and see how they can bring us joy while we act to ensure their future. Please tell us what you want to know about in the comments.