Burning Christmas Trees

By chance I came across the following two items at almost the same time.

First: "Your tree... a symbol of joy or a blazing death torch?" (via vintage advertising)

Life - Dec 13, 1948

Second: Hunter S. Thompson burning his Christmas tree, as witnessed and described by Time correspondent Sam Allis. (via Open Culture)

Click for larger version (pdf)

The video referenced in Allis's article. Listen for the screams of "NO, HUNTER, NO! PLEASE, HUNTER, DON’T DO IT!" in the background.

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Posted By: Alex - Fri Dec 22, 2023
Category: Christmas

Comments

If you ever tried to set fire on some discarded balsam tree needles, you understand why people wouldn't take those ads seriously. Those needles seem pretty impervious to burning. You can use dozens of matches trying to set them on fire. It's like they're coated in flame retardant. However, the twigs inside burn very well.

Posted by Yudith on 12/23/23 at 07:13 AM

As the song goes (and it does rhyme in Dutch, I promise):

It's Chrissemas, it's Chrissemas, it's Chrissemas, woo-hoo,
The bells are banging happily!
So many Christmas trees around,
That bring us joy and indoor fires,
It's Chrissemas, woo-hoo!

Posted by Richard Bos on 12/24/23 at 09:19 AM

@Yudith: there's a difference between balsam and pine oil. Trust me, a proper pine or fir, in the right circumstances, will go up in flames with much greater enthusiasm than a dry resin.

Posted by Richard Bos on 12/24/23 at 09:26 AM

So that's why a proper Christmas tree has to be balsam!

Posted by Yudith on 12/27/23 at 07:34 AM

Balsam is typically benzoic acid, which has a very low flammability -- similar to mineral oil. You might recognize benzoic acid; it's used as a food preservative.

-Chemistry class adjourned.

Posted by Virtual on 12/27/23 at 08:46 AM

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