Exchange Club selling trees, offering hints

The Spencer Exchange Club is again offering Christmas trees for sale at Babbs SuperValu on West Morgan Street/ SR46.

The trees are from northern Michigan and are fresh-cut. They range in size from six to eight feet. The price will be $40 with your choice of tree. Come early as the number available is limited.

All of the revenue from the tree sales is used by the Club for local projects including providing scholarships for Owen County students, funds for law enforcement and the fire department, prevention of child abuse, installation and maintenance of Freedom Shrines and other miscellaneous local projects.

Trees were available for purchase beginning on Nov. 29. They can be purchased at the extreme West end of the Babbs parking lot and throughout the day by paying at the office located in Babbs SuperValu.

Tree Care Tips

Caring for your tree is easy. The most important thing to remember is that real trees need water. The Exchange Club offers these helpful hints for caring for your trees:

1. To keep it fresh, store it in a bucket of warm water in a cool environment such as an unheated garage until it is ready to be brought indoors.

2. Cut one inch from the stump before setting up the tree to aid in water intake.

3. After you set the tree up in the house, keep plenty of warm water in the base (at least three inches) and check it daily as the fresh tree will absorb water rapidly. Don't let the water level drop below the fresh cut on the base of the tree. If this happens, a new seal will form and the tree will not take up any more water.

4. Consider buying a tree bag or placing an old blanket under the base of the tree as it makes cleanup easy and gets rid of many of the needles that have dried out.

5. Avoid placing the tree near warm or cold drafts, including radiators, heating vents, fireplaces, other heat sources, doorways and even televisions. These heat sources can prematurely dry out your tree. Your tree will last much longer if it is placed in a cool room with a constant temperature under 70 degrees.

6. To protect against the threat of fire, commercial fire retardant sprays may be applied directly to the foliage.

7. Check all electrical lights and connections before decorating your tree. Don't use lights with worn or frayed cords. Don't overload electrical circuits.

8. Finally have a safe Christmas by making sure you do not plug in too many lights in only one outlet, turn off all decorations before retiring at night and never leave your tree lights on when you are not at home.

Make the best environmental choice. Go green with a real Christmas tree, and when the holidays are over place it outside for use by the birds and wildlife. Thanks for all the donors who contributed to our Bikes for Tykes project again this year. Happy Holidays from the Spencer Exchange Club.

Bikes for Tykes

The Spencer Exchange Club is seeking donations for its 24th annual Bikes for Tykes project that provides many bicycles to needy Owen County children every year.

Donations may be sent to Spencer Exchange Club, P.O. Box 103, Spencer, IN 47460 or delivered to the law office of John J. Fuhs, 59 E. Franklin St., Spencer.