Recycle your Christmas tree and feed some hungry goats during this annual Philadelphia holiday tradition

From Philly and the Pa. suburbs to South Jersey and Delaware, what would you like WHYY News to cover? Let us know!

After you and your loved ones finish rocking around the Christmas tree this holiday season, some goats in Philadelphia will be happy to help take it off your hands.

The Philly Goat Project is gearing up for its sixth annual “Christmas Tree-Cycle,” which turns preloved live Christmas trees into snacks for the goats, as well as wood chips to cover trails in parks and community gardens throughout Philadelphia.

Executive Director and “Goat Mom” Karen Krivit said the annual Tree-Cycle isn’t just a recycling event — but a “festival of participatory sustainability.”

“Most people don’t get to see where their recycling goes,” Krivit said. “There’s nothing more hands-on…hoofs on…than goats eating Christmas trees.”

Organizers said the festivals will be bigger than ever before and span three days instead of the usual two. On Jan. 6 and 13, people can bring their used trees to Awbury Arboretum from noon to 3 p.m., and to the Laurel Hill West Cemetery on Jan. 20 from noon to 2 p.m. Rain makeup dates have been tentatively scheduled for the following day of each event.

“Folxherder” and “Goat Aunt” for PGP, Leslie Jackson, said the festival has grown tremendously since it began.

“Over six years, we’ve gone from 200 to 2,000 trees [each year] and we probably will get even more this year,” Jackson said. “We’re ready for that many trees.”

A $20 donation is requested for each tree. Proceeds will benefit literacy events in Philadelphia schools, environmental education, youth job training, a new grief garden, as well as Philly Goat Project’s year-round programing, according to a release.

Donations can be paid in cash, Venmo, CashApp, or PayPal. Tax receipts are available to those who request one.

“It is a fundraiser for us, but we just want people to come and enjoy and celebrate nature in the city,” Krivit said.

In addition to the tree drop-off, Krivit said there will be fun for the whole family, including a fire pit with free s’mores and hot cocoa, farm Olympics games for kids (only at the Awbury festivals), and a petting area with the goats.

Here are some drop-off options for people bringing trees to the Arbery Arboretum on Jan. 6 and 13:

1. 1. By Express curbside drop-off-and-donate (6336 Ardleigh St. entrance)
   2.  A “G.O.A.T. Safari” drive through the farm to drop off (6336 Ardleigh St. entrance)
   3.  Park on Washington Lane and bring your tree in yourself (Washington Lane entrance — look for the ambassadors to guide you)