IF THE green campaigners manage to change the habits of the nation, it will be popcorn and fruit, not glittering baubles, dangling from the branches of Christmas trees this year.

Traditional tree decorations are all under fire from environmental campaigners attempting to change the colour of Christmas from white to green.

Even the fairy will be missing, as she has been condemned as an eco-hazard.

Campaigners want the fairies, stars, tinsel and baubles that usually adorn the tree to be replaced with edible decorations that can be given to the birds when Christmas is over.

And forget about the annual trip to see grandma. For a really green Christmas the car should be left in the garage and “kith and kin” wished seasons greetings over the internet.

Tree lights, cards and wrapping paper are also targeted as wasteful in the guidance on how to have a green Christmas. Advice contained in the Green Guide to Christmas urges the public to use fewer lights, turn off those that remain during the day and to recycle Christmas cards.

Wrapping paper could, the guide suggests, be replaced with tin foil that can be used later in the kitchen, or with old newspapers, magazines or brown paper.

Artificial trees ought to be eschewed in favour of the real thing. “Our favourite option is to buy a new fir tree with its roots still attached from an ecologically sustainable source and plant it in your garden after Christmas,” says the report issued by Green Guide. “Do this every year until you have a mini forest in your backyard.”

They recognised that planting rows of trees over the years was not feasible for all householders but said that unwanted firs could be composted in the new year.

Of tree and other decorations, they say: “Many of the decorations available in high street stores have been treated chemically to colour the paper or are made out of nonbiodegradable substances.

“Avoid anything which cannot be recycled or has not been made from recycled materials. Use edible tree decorations that can be given to garden birds afterwards, like popcorn and cranberry strings.”

Amid growing concerns about global warming being caused by increased levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, the guide urges restraint on energy consumption.

“Increasingly there are options for you to both reduce the amount of energy you use and to seek out more sustainable sources,” it says. “What really lies at the heart of the issue is the need for us to make a cultural change. We need to stop assuming that we can go on as we are indefinitely.”

• Muslim leaders joined their Christian counterparts yesterday in criticising politicians and town hall leaders who want to play down Christmas.

  The Christian Muslim Forum said that right-wing extremism was being fuelled by attempts to remove religion from the festival, such as Birmingham’s decision to rename its celebrations Winterval.

  The forum said: “The desire to secularise religious festivals is offensive to both of our communities. Those who use the fact of religious pluralism as an excuse to de-Christianise British society unthinkingly become recuiting agents for the extreme Right.”

’TIS THE SEASON TO BE ECONOMICAL IN EXPENDING ENERGY

It is now possible to see and hear your loved-ones via the internet. “It is certainly worth trying, as the savings in CO2, time and energy are considerable, and one should always be looking for the lowest CO2-cost solutions.”

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