Spoilt for choice: Customers Kat Loh (left) and Angel Chin choosing Christmas trees at a shop in Kuala Lumpur. — AZHAR MAHFOF/The Star
PETALING JAYA: Christmas is not just about planning for reunions and meals. Decorations like the Christmas tree, which will be decked with baubles and tinsel, are equally important to fill the homes of those celebrating.
While some prefer to decorate their homes with a traditional and live tree, others look for convenience and low maintenance in the form of an artificial tree.
According to nursery owner Eko Hermawan, 35, real pine trees are more environmentally- friendly than fake ones.
“The pine trees I use and sell are from Europe. They are good for the environment as they produce oxygen in the atmosphere.
“The two popular trees we sell are the Noble Fir and Nordmann Fir, which are fresh and produce fragrance,” he said.
Eko said he has seen a huge demand for real Christmas trees this year due to the awareness that pine trees are being sold in Malaysia, adding that is it difficult to grow these trees here due to the tropical climate.
Although pine trees can only last up to six weeks and require greater care, many are still buying them or have made preorders at his shop in Bangsar.
Preschool teacher Marina Danker, 58, said she uses an artificial Christmas tree but tries to add branches from real pine trees picked from her neighbourhood.
“We also add a few ornaments, strands of crepe paper and balloons,” said Danker, who is from Melaka.
“In the morning, we can smell the branches’ fresh fragrance. But it doesn’t last long.”
Sonia John, 23, said she uses a fake tree but is keen to get a real pine tree.
“We have always used an artificial tree for Christmas because we do not know how or where to buy real pine trees,” said the executive from Petaling Jaya.
However, Phoebe Wong Shin, 23, said she is not interested in getting a real tree for Christmas as it is more expensive and requires a lot more maintenance.
“If you don’t take care of it properly, there will be bugs and leaves falling off the tree in the long run.
“In my house, we only use the fake tree as it can be used again and again,” the student, who is also from Petaling Jaya, added.
Meanwhile, Eko said sales were affected recently due to weather- induced shipment delays.
“Some 450 pine trees imported from Europe were affected; there were customers who wanted to put up their trees earlier and we refunded them.
“There were also customers who did not mind getting their trees later,” he added.
