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Article: Choosing a Fitting Monarch; Each Christmas a Different Conifer Became King for the Day
- Article from:
- The Washington Post
- Article date:
- December 24, 1987
- Author:
CopyrightThis material is published under license from the Washington Post. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Washington Post. (Hide copyright information)
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There are two kinds of Christmas trees for Elvira Hanna. There
is a third as well, in her mind far superior to the others, but she
is not quite sure if it is right to call that a proper Christmas
tree.
Hanna is a Washingtonian who grew up in Germany-the country of
origin for the now-worldwide tradition of celebrating the Christmas
season with a decorated conifer-an evergreen tree bearing cones.
Hanna remembers that the popular trees in her childhood were
Norway spruce and Austrian pine-the two fine conifers most common in
the mountains of Central Europe. These were the Christmas trees that
most Germans cut down in the forest or bought at the market. They
wanted something solidly green to ...