It’s a long-discussed debate: Should you get a real or fake tree for this holiday season?

UW School of Environment and Forest Sciences research professor and soils expert Sally Brown weighed in recently. She talked with KING 5 News about why getting a real tree is actually an act of sustainability.

“People think, ‘Christmas trees – they’re destroying the woods, destroying the forests,'” she told the news station. “It’s actually a really nice, sustainable type of agriculture. You’re getting good land use and benefits to the soil from growing these trees, and it’s a big source of income. So, the environmental impact of having acreage devoted to Christmas tree farms is pretty minimal.”

Watch the full story here.