Merkel’s 1.5 tonne Xmas tree hits the road
DPA/The Local - [email protected]
Published: 21 Nov, 2014 CET.
Updated: Fri 21 Nov 2014 16:12 CET
Donated by a private forestry concern, the 21-year-old fir was felled and loaded on a truck on Friday and dispatched to Berlin.
The tree grown in a forest in Neustrelitz, 120 km north of Berlin in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, will be unloaded on Saturday and hoisted at the Chancellor’s offices ready for decoration, the Hamburger Abendblatt reported.
Despite appearances, it is hardly the most German gift: the abies grandis, or grand fir, is actually native to western North America and is a relatively recent addition to European forests.
Nor is it likely to be the most valuable gift she will receive this year. From a forestry perspective it is worth just 50 euros since its wood is so soft that it is usually only used to make chipboard.
Private foresters around the country have sent the chancellor's office annual gifts of fir trees for the past 13 years.
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The tree grown in a forest in Neustrelitz, 120 km north of Berlin in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, will be unloaded on Saturday and hoisted at the Chancellor’s offices ready for decoration, the Hamburger Abendblatt reported.
Despite appearances, it is hardly the most German gift: the abies grandis, or grand fir, is actually native to western North America and is a relatively recent addition to European forests.
Nor is it likely to be the most valuable gift she will receive this year. From a forestry perspective it is worth just 50 euros since its wood is so soft that it is usually only used to make chipboard.
Private foresters around the country have sent the chancellor's office annual gifts of fir trees for the past 13 years.
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