The traditional holiday fir, the Norfolk Island Pine, has a back story worthy of a Hollywood movie. When you see these delicately shaped pines at your favorite retail store, you’re taking home a bit of nautical history.

Norfolk Island Pines or “Araucaria heterophylla” are native to Norfolk Island in the South Pacific. Their romantic history involves a famous sea captain and sultry South Sea Islands. In 1774, during his second exploratory sea voyage to the South Pacific, Captain James Cook discovered Norfolk Island.

Little Norfolk Island Pine trees make great gifts for your little ones.

On a weary vessel named Resolution, Cook and his crew also discovered stately 200-foot giant pines they named Norfolk Island Pines. They were prized as a source of pine planks desperately needed for ship building and nearby flax for making sails.

Today, like modern day explorers, a few intrepid seed cone “hunters” from Florida travel to the Hawaiian island of Oahu every two years to revisit the grand Norfolk Island Pines that thrive in the warm, tropical breezes and coastal soil.

The harvesters brave dizzying heights of 100 feet to pluck the hardiest seed cones from the whirling branches. The lime green prickly seed cones are then shipped to Costa Farms south of Miami, where horticultural experts plant them, using six to eight seeds per pot to assure consistently superior pines for perfect holiday decorating.

Add holiday cheer to a cozy corner in your living room with Norfolk Island Pines.

The soft and compact needles, strong branches, and naturally symmetrical shape of the Norfolk Island Pine make it the ideal holiday tree. It can handle homemade ornaments and keepsakes, and provide endless decorating and gift-giving options.

“Miniature evergreens are the trend in home decor, particularly with live trees like the Norfolk Island Pine,” says Ethne Clark of Traditional Home magazine. “These miniature versions are elegant in a lovely container on the mantel, or decorated in the children’s room for fun.”

Small enough for a table-top display or large enough to be the dramatic focal point of any room, the pines tuck nicely into tight spaces in apartments, dorm rooms, patios or cozy corners. And, they come in a variety of sizes from 14 to 44 inches tall for a nice floor plant.

“These living trees are affordable, eco-friendly ways to decorate and provide years of pleasure,” says Jose Smith, chief executive officer of Costa Farms, one of the nation’s leading nurseries.

Make a dramatic holiday display by your fireplace with Norfolk Island Pines.

After the holidays, you can place the tree in a pretty pot to beautify your spaces and naturally refresh your indoor air.

Other creative gift ideas and decorating tips with a Norfolk Island Pine include:

* Stumped on a teacher’s gift and refuse to buy another candle? Many table-top trees come fully decorated with a gift tag and fit nicely on desks.
* Holiday party coming up? The trees make great hostess gifts. Don’t forget your boss, friends, and colleagues.
* Express yourself! Enjoy your family time by encouraging your children to decorate their own tree. Create theme trees like a “tropical Christmas’ for your dining and family rooms — adorned with mini flowers, tropical fish ornaments and seashells.
* Don’t forget your kids in college. Norfolk Island Pines make perfect gifts for students who want to decorate and add green to their rooms.

Caring for Your Norfolk Island Pine:
* They grow best indoors in a sunny location and prefer to be near a window — but away from direct heat. Avoid direct intense sunlight.
* Indoors they flourish in 50 percent humidity so consider running a humidifier or sit them in a tray of pebbles, watering the pebbles during winter months.
* Keep the soil moist but don’t let it dry out or stand in water.
* If you live where the temperature stays above 60 degrees (such as zones nine and10), your Norfolk Island Pine can be planted outdoors in the landscape.
* As a houseplant, the Norfolk Island Pine naturally filters the air from indoor toxins and provides much-needed moisture during the dry winter months.

Select from 14- to 44-inch tall trees, fully decorated or ready for your finishing touch, available at neighborhood retailers. For more information or to find a retailer near you, visit www.costafarms.com.

Courtesy of ARAcontent

And don

Think green is just the traditional color of the holidays? Think again. This season it’s more than a color. It’s the hippest way to decorate while giving back to both your family and Mother Earth.

And the easiest, most festive way to be an earth friendly elf is to decorate with a living Norfolk Island Pine. No live trees to cut down, no dead needles to clean up and no discarded tree to drag to the curb and overload the landfills.

“These living Christmas trees are inexpensive and eco-chic, all wrapped in one decorated package,” says Jose Smith, CEO of Costa Farms, one of the nation’s leading nurseries.

And since Christmas trees are one of the most popular traditions of the season, these miniature living trees present a variety of decorating and gift-giving options along with many green benefits.

But think small. According to Lynn Long from Southern Living, large living trees are “high-maintenance affairs, but these miniature versions are fun to decorate and have some definite advantages over their big, tall look-alikes.”

Easy to grow, Norfolk Island Pines make cheerful centerpieces during your holiday feast and add eco-flair to your home’s decor. A native of the South Pacific, the soft, compact needles and naturally symmetrical shape of the tree provides a charming backdrop for all your seasonal celebrations.

Small enough for a tabletop display in the kitchen or hall or large enough to be the focal point of any room, they tuck nicely into tight spaces in apartments, dorm rooms, patios or cozy corners. After the holidays, untrim your mini tree and place it in a pretty pot and use as a house plant. With just a little care, your Norfolk Island Pine will reward you for many Christmases to come.

Decorating and Gift Giving Tips with Mini Trees

For a green Christmas this year, check out these fun tips:

* “Why not have a living tree in every room?” suggests Southern Living’s Long. “You can get creative and have some fun using your special collections of ornaments on different trees, either in one location or scattered throughout the house.”

* Long suggests choosing a theme for each room, adding petite cooking utensils for the kitchen, candy canes in the den and lovely gold or silver ribbons entwined with flowers in the living room, all in colors that complement the room’s décor.

* For a dramatic look, decorate three to five “themed” trees and set them on your dining table or mantel.

* And don’t forget the children’s own little tree for their rooms. “Think of all the fun and memories you and your kids will have decorating the tree with handmade paper decorations, candies, popcorn and small miniature lights,” says Long.

* Norfolk Island Pines are perfect gifts for college students or apartment dwellers who want a touch of Christmas but don’t have space for a large tree.

* Don’t know what to give your child’s teacher, your boss or hostess? Pick up either the 14- or 22-inch Norfolk Island Pine fully decorated with a gift tag.

Care Tips
Place the Norfolk Island Pine in an open, bright location such as on countertops, tabletops or in an office, but not in full sun. They prefer to be near a window but away from direct heat. Keep the soil moist but don’t let it dry out or stand in water. Feed with a complete balanced fertilizer every month.

As a house plant, the Norfolk Island Pine naturally filters the air and adds much needed moisture to a room, especially needed during the winter. It also absorbs and breaks down harmful pollutants, giving you and your family an extra Christmas gift — a healthier and greener environment.

If you live where the temperature stays above 60 degrees, such as Zones 9 and 10, your Norfolk Island Pine tree can be planted in the landscape and loved for many years.

Available at neighborhood retailers, 14- or 22-inch Norfolk Island Pines come fully decorated and ready for the party, or select the larger 44-inch tree and custom decorate it with your favorite ornaments.

This year go “green” with a living Norfolk Island Pine and create lasting memories for you and your family. For more information or to find a retailer near you, visit www.costafarms.com.

Courtesy of ARAcontent