How to Put Christmas Lights on Trees Without Damaging Them

Which trees should not be lit at all?

Start by ruling some out. The Davey Tree Expert Company's guidance is not to put lights on a young, newly planted tree, or on a tree that is weak or damaged in any way, and to choose a healthy tree instead. A recently planted tree has thin bark and is still establishing roots. A tree with dead wood, cracks or a history of dropping limbs should not have a person on a ladder in it or extra weight on it.

If you are not sure which category a tree falls into, that is a question to answer before decorating, not after. Dead branches, a lean that has changed, fungal growth at the base and old storm wounds are the things an arborist looks at in a tree health and risk assessment.

How do you wrap a trunk or branch without girdling it?

Girdling is what happens when something tight stays around a stem while the stem keeps growing. The wood expands, the wire does not, and the living layer just under the bark gets squeezed. Holiday lights are on for a short season, so the wrap itself is rarely the issue. The trouble starts when a wrap is left on. As an arborist with Davey Tree told News 12, wire left in place can choke a tree once it is growing rapidly in spring.

So wrap for removal. Wind the strand around the trunk in an even spiral, snug enough to stay put and no tighter, and secure the end of each string with twine or electrical tape, as Davey's guidance describes. Do not knot wire around the stem. Avoid crossing strands over each other on a branch: the same arborist warns that crossed wires create pinch points that can break it. A wrap you can unwind in one direction in January is the goal.

Which branches can take a wrap?

Sturdy ones only. The Davey arborist's rule of thumb is to select branches at least one inch in diameter. Thinner twigs have delicate bark, bend under the weight of a strand, and are the first to snap when someone pulls lights off in the cold. Not every branch needs lighting anyway.

Stop short of the fine growth at the tips. That is where next year's buds are, and on a deciduous tree those buds are already formed and waiting through winter. Stripping them off with a strand of lights in January costs the tree leaf area in spring. If the outer canopy matters to the look, lighted ornaments hung from branches that can carry them are a gentler way to fill it in.

Are conifers and deciduous trees lit differently?

Yes. A bare maple or ash shows its structure in winter, so lights follow the trunk and main limbs and the result is a drawing of the tree in light. A spruce, fir or pine hides its branches inside the foliage, and wrapping individual limbs is neither practical nor kind to the needles. For conifers, the Davey arborist's advice is to drape strands over the branches instead of winding around them, securing with tape where needed.

Conifers bring one more consideration, which is height. The classic spiral around a tall evergreen means getting lights to the top, and that is work for a pole or a lift, not for someone leaning out from the upper rungs of a ladder with the tree in the way.

How much weight do lights add once it snows?

On their own, not much. The concern is what they are added to. The Davey arborist's point is that lights add weight to branches during snowstorms, and strands and cords also give wet snow and ice more surface to cling to. A limb that was carrying its own snow comfortably is now carrying snow, ice-coated wire and whatever force the cord applies when wind moves it.

Evergreens and multi-stemmed trees are the ones to watch, since they are the ones that load up and split in heavy, wet snow. Our guide to winter tree care and snow load covers how to read that risk. Keep heavy connectors and cord junctions near the trunk, not out on a limb, and route supply cords down the trunk so nothing hangs in a span between trees for snow to pile on.

Why are nails, screws and staples a bad idea?

Every fastener driven into a tree is a wound through the bark, and bark is the tree's only barrier against decay organisms and insects. A tree does not heal a hole the way skin does. It walls it off and grows around it, and a row of staples up a trunk is a row of small openings that stay there.

They are also bad for the lights. Utah State University Extension warns that nails and staple guns can easily cut or damage the insulation and conductors of a light string, and a nicked wire wrapped around a wet trunk is exactly the fault you do not want. Twine, tape and the spiral of the wrap itself hold a strand on a tree perfectly well. If something will not stay without a fastener, it is in the wrong place.

What if the tree is near a power line?

Then that tree does not get lights, and nobody goes up into it. NorthWestern Energy's safety guidance is to assume all power lines are energized, and never to touch a power line or any object, including a tree, that is in contact with one. It also says that if a tree or branch does come in contact with a line, you should keep yourself and others away and contact the utility. That includes the service drop running from the pole to the house, which often passes through a front-yard canopy.

A light strand is a long conductor, and so is a damp branch, a metal ladder and a pole used to lift lights. If any part of a tree is close enough to a line that you have to think about it, choose a different tree and call the utility about the clearance. Do not prune it yourself.

When do lights have to come off?

After the holidays and well before spring growth. There are two separate reasons. The first is snow: prompt removal takes the extra load off the branches for the rest of the winter. The second is growth, already described. Extension guidance adds that the lights themselves are not designed for prolonged exposure to sun and weather.

Take them off the way they went on, unwinding from the top down, on a day when the wood is not brittle with cold if you can choose. Never pull a strand free from the ground. Late winter is also when deciduous trees are best pruned, so removal is a good moment to look the tree over and plan any dormant pruning it needs.

How does HJ handle lights on trees?

Trees are our main trade. HJ Property Care & Tree Service is co-owned by Justin Johnson, an ISA Certified Arborist, and the crew does tree work every week of the year. Holiday lighting is new for us in 2026, and wrapping and draping trees and shrubs is part of what we plan to offer, with a return visit to take everything down. Packages and pricing are still being finalized.

The Christmas light installation page describes the service as it stands, and it sits alongside the rest of our fall and winter services. For the electrical side of lighting a tree, including cords and connections in snow, see the outdoor light safety guide.

Call HJ Property Care & Tree Service at (406) 215-7319 or join the holiday lighting interest list and you will hear first when install dates open.

More resources