Recycle your tree with Sumter's Grinding of the Greens

Sumter County and the City of Sumter are giving residents an opportunity to recycle their Christmas trees at the annual "Grinding of the Greens" where the donated trees will be turned into mulch.

Only live Christmas trees cleared of all decorations will be accepted. Wreaths, garland, greenery and tree stands will not be collected.

Donated Christmas trees will be made into mulch on Saturday, Jan. 19, which will be available for free pickup from 7 to 9 a.m. on a first-come, first-served basis.

Anyone who would like to take some mulch should bring containers or bags, tools to pick it up and a way to haul it. You do not have to donate a tree to take mulch.

Trees can be donated at the following locations:

- Sumter County Recycling Centers: Rainaire Boulevard, Stamey Livestock Road, Cane Savannah Road, Pinewood Road, Queen Chapel Road, Bethel Church Road, Alligator Branch Road, Pleasant Grove Road and Spencer Road;

- At the entrance to Dillon Park off Frontage Road; and

- City residents can place their trees curbside for collection between Jan. 7 and Jan. 17.

For more information on Grinding of the Greens, call Sumter County Public Works at (803) 436-2241 or City of Sumter Public Services at (803) 436-2558.

Another eco-friendly option suggested by South Carolina Department of Natural Resources is repurposing old trees to benefit the environment and wildlife.

Old Christmas trees can be used for erosion control or as brush piles to provide resting and cover for small animals such as quail, rabbits, sparrows, towhees and wrens.

According to a release, SCDNR fishery biologists use discarded Christmas trees to attract fish to certain areas and to act as natural reefs for freshwater fish at all major reservoirs in South Carolina such as Lake Moultrie and Lake Marion.

Once the tree is sunk, according to the release, aquatic insects will live and grow within the branches and needles and attract small fish which are eaten by larger fish.

DNR asks that people do not discard trees in marked state fish attraction areas and allow agency biologists to choose which trees should go where so each area gets trees best suited for its needs.

For this option, trees can be dropped off at 305 Black Oak Road until Jan. 10 in Bonneau in Berkeley County.

A third option is to replant a tree if the root ball is intact, according to the release, so it can provide evergreen cover for wildlife year round. Consumers should keep in mind, however, that many kinds of popular Christmas trees will not survive the hot and humid South Carolina summers.

The species that will likely live and prosper here are: Virginia pine, Scotch pine, sand pine, spruce pine, Eastern red cedar, white cedar, Leyland cypress and white pine, which does best in the mountains and upper Piedmont.

Two varieties of Arizona smooth cypress developed in South Carolina, Clemson Greenspire and Carolina Sapphire, will also grow well in South Carolina's climate.

Tree species that may not survive, except in the foothills and mountains, include hemlock, Colorado blue spruce, Douglas fir, Fraser fir and balsam fir.

For more information, call the wildlife and freshwater fisheries office at (803) 734-3886.