For the past few years, we have cut down a tree in National Forest Service lands of Northern California. We get a permit first and pay a fee ($15), then pick out our own fresh tree from the forest. My assumption is that this is a natural "organic" (in the generic sense, not certified) tree since it's growing in a national forest. What's your assessment of this practice, Umbra?

For folks in some parts of North America (and perhaps elsewhere), you can get a local, organic, real christmas tree AND be doing your part for ecosystem restoration. In grasslands of parts of British Columbia, Washington, Oregon, Montana, and Idaho, fire suppression is leading to in-growth and expansion of trees and loss of grasslands and grassland-dependent wildlife. Fire is a natural process - which we've interrupted - that would have maintained the grassland / forest balance.

Land conservation organisations sometimes have "cut your own Christmas tree" events to thin in-grown trees on their grassland properties - not only are these trees local and pesticide-free, removing them is part of ecosystem restoration and benefits local conservation organisations.

Talk to your local land trust about live Christmas trees from their properties (or just talk to them anyway, they're good folk doing great work)!

That's a tough one... no pesticides are being used, but does the Forest Service plant seedlings to replace what was taken? That is a benefit to the Christmas tree farms...they are sustainable in the sense that they are planting several seedlings for each harvested tree.

Trees growing in a national forest will grow to maturity (and provide habitat, oxygen, etc.) if not cut down, so it would be best to leave them be part of the forest.

Why not buy a live native tree to plant in your yard or give away afterwards? Norfolk Island pines are also nice plants that do well as houseplants, providing their needs are tended to.

I usually proclaim my deepest love and appreciation for Umbra, but this answer may have caused irreperable harm to our relationship.

Umbra, what about a tree with roots that can be planted after the holiday?  put it in a big pot keep it moist, and in the spring, have the kids help you pop it in the ground ...  sorta like a "catch and release" policy for trees.

Or, change the tradition a bit. maybe plant a tree outside near your house, and in the winter, put on a coat and go outside to decorate it. maybe even visit it outside, take a deep breath of fresh winter air.

Just because a tradition exists, is NOT reason enough for it to continue to exist blindly.

There is absolutely no excuse to chop down a perfectly healthy tree, organic or not, put it in their living room for 3 weeks, then throw it into a landfill to rot with old diapers and banana peels...

santa will still come, tree or not, i promise.

I agree with greeneerg, there really is no ecologically justifiable reason to cut down a healthy tree, put it in one's home for a few weeks, and then dispose it in a landfill. If you think about it, it smacks of typical, mindless, consumerism. Now, I know that this is probably an emotionally charged topic for some people but there really ought to be an alternative to cutting down (killing) trees in the prime of their lives.

In a perverse way, cutting down healthy trees reminds me of the purchasing and wearing fur coats. In that case, we don't throw away the coat but we still have killed an organism in the prime of its life.

If we call ourselves "environmentalists" then we need to step up to the plate and do the right thing - every time - especially if we know right from wrong! There can be no justification for ecologically minded folks adding to the wanton destruction of the natural world.

And yes, just as greeneerg mentioned, Santa really will come - tree or no tree.

Most people are really adamant about having a tree for Christmas and will not sacrifice tradition for environmental values. That's fine but we can easily compromise. As greeneerg and estark have mentioned, buying a live tree is a viable option. Usually though buying a live evergreen and keeping it indoors where it is too warm and will suffer, possibly loose a few feathers, or even die, doesn't seem that appealing. We have tried it at home, when we lived in Ottawa, Canada. The tree was not doing well indoors, but we had to wait until spring for the ground to thaw so we could plant it. It did not survive.
Determined not to buy a cut tree, I got a Norfolk pine. It looks roughly like an evergreen. It grows about one foot in height every 2 years. And it makes a wonderful, original, and loyal, Christmas tree. It loves being indoors all year round. For us this has been the best and by far the cheapest alternative (think of how much money you spend over the years buying a cut tree).
Norfolk pines are great indoor plants. With a little care and attention, they can thrive. Plus, it's the only plant in our household that has remained disease-free (it has been in our home for 4 years).
So, if you feel bad about buying a cut tree, why not try a live Norfolk pine?

My parents bought a fake tree when I was about 13, and I remember being upset that we weren't going out each year to get our own tree, but later I understood how labor intensive buying,  maintaining and disposing of a real tree can be and wasn't quite as angry at them. So I'm still undecided on what's the best choice. Thus I am tree-less.

Interesting comparison to fur coats. The fur industry also likes to promote their product as a "renewable resource" but of course they neglect to mention that the raw pelts are frequently sent to China, a country with very lax pollution regulations, for processing and dying, and then shipped back to North America or Europe for sale.  So the comparison with the tree industry isn't quite accurate since the trees are cut and then taken directly home.  And then there's the whole electrocution thing.

I bought a Norfolk Island pine a few years back when I had my first baby because I felt like providing a Christmas tree was part of a mom's responsibilities.  It was potted, and only $35, so it was good enough for me.  It was a little Charlie-Brownish (ie, sparse compared to the trees of my childhood), but it worked.  It lived in my bedroom all year (summering in the yard), and moved into the living room under the bay window during the month of December.  As my children got older, I thought maybe they'd want a "better" tree, so I suggested getting a "real" Christmas tree last year.  Both of my girls (now 4 and 7) protested, arguing for their beloved tree.  Bottom line?  Kids like what they're used to.  If everyone were used to spending $35 for seven years of the same Christmas tree, the Norfolk Island pine would be on everyone's wish list.

You certainly can decorate the rest of your house to be very festive, and perhaps even include a live wreath (cut branches from planted tree).  But, if you did want to go treeless and want an alternative for the gifts: how about stacking the gifts in the shape of a Christmas tree. Would keep the kids from snooping, too.

The ground might be frozen in Canada in the winter, but there are a of places in the Continental 48 where it's warm enough to plant you Christmas tree in the middle of winter -- and it will do fine. Most conifers are well adapted to cold weather.  Spring isn't a good time to plan most conifers -- the hot, dry weather will be upon the poor plant before it has time to set roots.  

I've had Christmas with a tree, and without.  Both are fine.  But if you must by a tree, get a live one.

While I'm all for a live tree at Christmas, the concerns expressed by various commentators are also valid.  My solution was to buy a potted tree, keep it until January and then plant it.
My reasons were twofold - I wanted to establish a snowfence of trees along the driveway of the farm I own and have soemthing besides a dead tree shedding needles all over the place.
The first Christmas was not very successful - I live in Ontario and where the farm is located the ground is usually frozen by January.  
The following year was much better - a hole was dug, the soil from it piled nearby and all would have proceeded well if it hadn't been for a snowstorm that filled the hole and froze the soil!  After nearly breaking a leg trying to find the hole and taking a pickaxe to the soil, the tree was successfully planted and has grown mightily.
So here's the way to do it:  dig your hole before the first frost.  Mark it (a broken hockey stick works well), save the soil in a bag (or two) in the house or  basement, where it can't freeze. After Christmas, pop your tree out of its pot, having watered it well and place it it in the prepared hole.  Backfill the tree and hole with the saved soil, making sure to leave no air pockets.  Mound the snow (if there is any) around the base of the planted tree to act as insulation and as a source of moisture when it melts.  My snowfence of living conifers is almost complete so I'll be starting a new site for the trees of Christmas future.
(A final note about the very first tree that taught me what to do: it was a Douglas fir and did manage to survive, despite my bumbling efforts and now towers over the others.)

We usually post Christmas boughs - branch cuttings tied up with ribbons on our front porch. Very festive looking, much less work than decorating a big tree with plastic Chinese made ornaments.