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\nUsed natural Christmas trees can have another life after the holiday season when donated to the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources\u2019 \u201cChristmas for the Fishes\u201d tree recycling program.<\/p>\n
\nUsed natural Christmas trees can have another life after the holiday season when donated to the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources\u2019 \u201cChristmas for the Fishes\u201d tree recycling program.<\/p>\n
The trees can give a home to fish in many Kentucky lakes in the coming year. This annual program uses evergreens donated after the holiday season to create underwater habitats that help fish thrive. <\/p>\n
Spencer Phillips, a fisheries biologist with Kentucky Fish and Wildlife, said donated Christmas trees are put to work in local reservoirs as fish habitat, where they are arranged in clusters that create dense branches and small pockets where young fish can hide. These structures also attract sportfish, offering opportunistic feeding as smaller fish venture out from cover.<\/p>\n
Trees should be real, not artificial, and should be free of lights, garland, and decorations. Limbs, wreaths, brush, or other plants will not be accepted.<\/p>\n
Fish thrive in an environment that is full of different types of cover, including trees and logs. The donated trees will help restore woody structures that have previously decayed in our lakes, providing protective cover and shade for a variety of fish species.<\/p>\n
Donated trees will be anchored to environmentally friendly weights and submerged at various depths in different lakes and reservoirs across Kentucky to provide places for fish to feed, shelter, and spawn. They provide excellent refuge and feeding habitat for game fish, as well as for small fish and invertebrates that are crucial to a thriving ecosystem.<\/p>\n
The locations where trees are installed generally become hot spots for fish species targeted by anglers. These locations are recorded by Kentucky Fish and Wildlife staff and the GPS coordinates made available to anglers through the \u201cLakes with Fish Attractors\u201d page on the department\u2019s website and FishBoatKY app available on the iTunes App and Google Play stores.<\/p>\n
Kentucky Fish and Wildlife is funded through the sale of fishing and hunting licenses and permits, boat registrations, and related grants. Conserving Kentucky\u2019s fish and their habitats and providing related recreational opportunities are important aspects of the department\u2019s mission.<\/p>\n
Kentucky Fish and Wildlife will be accepting evergreen trees from December 26 through January 16, 2026, at 37 drop-off locations across the state.<\/p>\n