Chop down your own Christmas tree from Shawnee National Forest

Create special memories by bringing your family to the Shawnee National Forest this season to cut your own Christmas tree.

Christmas tree permits are available to buy online on Recreation.gov as of Nov. 9.

Permits cost $5 (one permit allowed per household), plus a $2.50 online transaction fee. The permit allows for one Eastern Red Cedar tree to be cut and taken home. Permitters must harvest the Eastern Red Cedar on Shawnee National Forest land and chain saws may be used for cutting the tree. Permitters must also follow Forest Service motor vehicle restrictions in removal and hauling of their Christmas tree. Trees cannot be cut from any restricted areas listed on the permit.

To buy a permit, visit www.recreation.gov/tree-permits/shawnee. Visitors will need to set up or login to a Recreation.gov account to complete the transaction. A change from last year is that no permits will be sold at Shawnee National Forest offices, but rather the permit is available only online.

<h3 class="breakHead">Every Kid Outdoors</h3>

The Shawnee is making available a free Christmas tree permit to every interested fourth grader with a Every Kid Outdoors pass or paper voucher. Every Kid Outdoors is a nationwide call to action to connect kids to nature. All fourth graders are eligible to receive an Every Kid Outdoors pass that allows free access to federal lands and waters across the country for a full year.

For additional information about the initiative and how to obtain a pass, visit www.everykidoutdoors.gov. To obtain a free Christmas tree permit, the fourth graders' parent or guardian should log onto the Shawnee's Recreation.gov website (see above) and have their paper voucher or pass number ready ($2.50 online transaction fee applies).

Cutting Christmas trees can also help improve forest health. The permit system helps to thin densely populated stands of small-diameter trees. Removing some Christmas trees allows more available nutrients and extra space to grow for the trees that are left standing.

Opening up groves of cedar trees can also improve foraging habitat for a variety of wildlife species.