Household recycling
How to Recycle Holiday Decorations
Ornaments, artificial and live trees, wreaths, garlands, and tinsel. Mostly a donation category, with live trees the one genuine composting route and flocking the disqualifier people miss.
Special handlingLast reviewed July 28, 2026
Quick answer
Donate what still looks good, because almost none of it recycles. Artificial trees are not recyclable and thrift stores are the recommended route. A live tree does get composted, but only stripped completely bare, and a flocked tree is rejected outright because the fake snow cannot be processed. Natural wreaths and garlands compost once the wire and ribbon come off.
- Recycling route
- Special handling
How to Prepare
- 1Donate usable decorations, since seasonal items resell well and thrift stores want them
- 2Strip a live tree completely: ornaments, tinsel, lights, wire, and the stand all come off
- 3Keep flocked trees out of tree recycling, since the fake snow cannot be processed at compost facilities