Saying goodbye to your Christmas tree can be difficult. But you can take some of the sting out of it by disposing your tree with the San Juan County Department of Public Works — for free.

Public Works will accept Christmas trees at no charge at any of the island’s solid waste facilities between Dec. 26 and Jan. 7, where the trees will be chipped for use as mulch for public projects. Trees must be undecorated, natural; artificial or flocked trees are not accepted.

A year ago, Public Works produced roughly 2.3 tons of mulch through its holiday tree chipping program. For more info, contact Public Works, 370-0503.