DES MOINES, Iowa- One Des Moines resident is praising his experience using a sustainable Christmas tree this holiday season.

QstN is based in Des Moines and is a sustainable solutions provider within the energy industry. Last year, the company partnered with Bentley Ridge Tree Farm & Nursery in Grimes to provide sustainable Christmas trees to people in the metro. This program may be a popular trend in the future because the recent drought may impact the supply of Christmas trees in Iowa farms.

Jake Campos of Des Moines heard about QstN’s sustainable Christmas tree initiative last year from family members. This was his second holiday season taking part in the program.

“I just kind of liked the idea of it still being alive. I always thought it was a little bit wasteful to have to throw out a tree that was alive a week ago… Obviously, you can compost them and things like that, but I like the idea of it going back into the ground and then someday being planted forever,” he said.

Campos said the process was simple. He decided to get a tree from the farm, instead of having it delivered.

The tree came in a pot, so the farm recommended watering the tree with three-quarters of a gallon of water every five days. They also recommended keeping the tree away from heat sources to prevent it from drying out.

On Friday, Campos took off the holiday decorations from the tree and crews picked it up from his porch. The tree is now back at the farm, where it will continue to grow until the next holiday season.

“That’s my favorite part of the program, that the tree is going to be out there. It’s going to be on the tree farm living this whole next year,” said Campos.

When the tree is back at the farm, they first put it in a greenhouse to acclimatize it before replanting it outside. If all of the directions are followed, the tree will live to the next holiday season.

QstN previously told WHO 13 News that some customers are requesting to have the same tree every year. While this option isn’t available yet, they are working to find a solution to provide the same tree every year to customers who request it.