In the days just after Thanksgiving, families across the country take part in what is often called the great Christmas tree debate. What kind of tree do we decorate -- real or artificial?

For many people, artificial trees just make sense. While the "faux firs" cost more up front, they can be used for many years, sometimes even a decade. They look good, hold ornaments well, don't offer any surprising bald spots, and most of the time, the lights are permanently mounted on the tree. And perhaps best of all, they are low maintenance because they don't need to be watered, and they hang on to their needles.

So, year after year, you pull them out of the box, set them up, bend the branches just so, add decorations and plug in the lights. Or if you are really particular about how the tree looks and have the space, you can be like Ruth Schmidt, who carefully covers her tree in plastic and stores it fully decorated. "I have the ornaments just the way I like them, and we have the storage room, so I just have someone help me set it in place, uncover it, and it is ready to go," she says.

If you tire of your artificial tree, it doesn't have to immediately end up in a landfill. You can donate it or pass it on to a friend or a young family member who might be new to Christmas decorating. Many people with limited financial resources are thrilled to find good, gently used trees in second-hand stores. Just try to donate before Thanksgiving, when stores will put them on display and sell them during the holidays.

However, for some folks nothing brings Christmastime home like the lovely sight and scent of a real Christmas tree. Over the past few decades, the true firs have become favorites. This includes the noble, fraser and balsam firs. Still popular are the traditional favorites such as the blue spruce, white pine and Scots pine.

In late November, orchard center proprietor Gayle Johnson trucks in mostly fraser firs for her long-time and new customers. The branches turn slightly upward, have good needle retention and hold heavier ornaments. "They are wonderful all-around trees," she says. "And the scent is amazing."

According to the EPA, approximately 33 million real Christmas trees are sold in North America each year. Most of those trees are "treecycled" and are used for mulch, playground material and beachfront or lake shore stabilization. For each tree that is harvested, one to three seedlings are planted the following spring, ensuring the supply of trees will remain steady.

When it comes to choosing a tree, sometimes a compromise is best, says Michele Taylor. Last Christmas, after years of putting up two artificial trees -- a large and lovely traditional 10-foot tree in the living room and a sweetly decorated tiny tree in the dining room -- Taylor selected a petite fraser fir from Johnson's tree lot.

"My daughter had noticed a really nice little tree on Gayle's lot and told me about it on Thanksgiving. So, the next morning, I went and bought it first thing. The tree was an absolutely darling four-foot tree that I decorated for the dining room with new color coordinated ornaments and traditional colored lights," Taylor says. "It smelled good and looked old-fashioned and sweet. I admired it all season and plan to get another one this year."

And as for the tree that had formerly been in the dining room? "I couldn't bear not to use it, so that one went in the master bedroom," she says. "Three trees! We loved it!"