Donate your Christmas tree to these NJ county parks

Amanda Oglesby, Asbury Park Press
Updated ·2 min read
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The Christmas season is over and now comes the chore of disposing of the dying holiday tree.

But the fading tree still has purpose: Ocean County Parks and the American Littoral Society want real Christmas trees.

Ocean County Parks are looking to recycle trees into mulch and other park materials. The trees serve a variety of uses and are components in landscaping, slope stabilization and walking trails, according to county officials.

The American Littoral Society will collect donated trees for its Slade Dale Sanctuary living shoreline project, a 13-acre preserve along Beaverdam Creek in Point Pleasant. The trees will be used to slow erosion and build marsh habitat along the creek.

Trees can be dropped off at Good Shepherd Lutheran Church at 708 Route 88, Point Pleasant, in the field behind the parking lot .

To be donated, trees must be free of decorations and flocking.

A customer chooses a pre-cut Christmas tree at Anne Ellen Christmas Tree Farm in Manalapan, NJ Wednesday, December 6, 2023.
A customer chooses a pre-cut Christmas tree at Anne Ellen Christmas Tree Farm in Manalapan, NJ Wednesday, December 6, 2023.

Ocean County Parks and Recreation and the county's Solid Waste Management department are seeking trees at the following locations:

  • Ocean County Recycling Centers, located at 535 South Oberlin Ave., Lakewood and 379 Haywood Road, Stafford. Both centers are open Monday through Saturday, from 7:30 a.m. to 3 p.m.

  • Cloverdale Farm County Park, 34 Cloverdale Road, Barnegat.

  • Jakes Branch County Park, 1100 Double Trouble Road, Beachwood.

  • Mill Creek County Park, 111 Chelsea Ave., Berkeley.

  • Robert J. Miller Airpark, 901 Route 530, Berkeley.

  • Ocean County Golfcourse at Forge Pond, 301 Chambers Bridge Ave., Brick.

  • Patriots County Park, 485 Bowman Road, Jackson.

  • Enos Pond County Park, 330 East Lacey Road, Lacey.

  • Ocean County Park, 659 Ocean Ave., Lakewood.

  • Freedom Fields County Park, 1160 Route 539, Little Egg Harbor.

  • Ocean County Gold Course at Atlantis, 261 Country Club Blvd., Little Egg Harbor.

  • Beaver Dam County Park, 3430 Bridge Ave., Point Pleasant.

  • A. Paul King County Park, 2 West Bay Ave., Stafford.

  • Cattus Island County Park, 1170 Cattus Island Blvd., Toms River.

  • Stanley H. "Tip" Seaman County Park, 120 Lakeside Drive (Route 9), Tuckerson

  • Wells Mills County Park, 905 Wells Mills Road (Route 532), Waretown.

Trees will be accepted through Jan. 31.

Most towns in Monmouth County provide curbside Christmas tree pickup.

Amanda Oglesby is an Ocean County native who covers education and the environment. She has worked for the Press for more than a decade. Reach her at @OglesbyAPP, aoglesby@gannettnj.com or 732-557-5701.

This article originally appeared on Asbury Park Press: Dispose of your Christmas tree at these Jersey Shore county parks