Deano - you certainly can! Give it an annual dressing of fresh compost and repot whenever the roots start to grow out of the bottom of the pot. Depending on the species you have (might be some sort of dwarf spruce), it could grow to around chest height.
Teresa - in theory, yes, you can, but the results may vary. It will have a better chance of survival if it was pot grown, rather than having been grown in a field and then moved to a pot for sale. You'll need to prune the roots as well as the branches, and, eventually, it may lose its traditional Christmas tree shape. No harm in trying though!
Fortunately for me Southend council collect and compost all trees if you leave them on the pavement by your house (mine is there as I type this), which makes the whole disposal process very easy and guilt free. It would be nice to make more 'use' of it though - perhaps I'll go and whip in back before the collection people get their hands on it!
This year I moved the tree outdoors and decorated it with edible garlands and bird seed ornaments for birds wintering in our area. This way I still get to enjoy it a little longer. I wrote about it and gave some examples today @ http://dabblingsandwhimsey.blogspot.com/2011/01/christmas-tree-leftovers.html I love your idea too though for a bee hotel. I might do that later this spring when I'm done using it to feed the birds.
I have a tree in a pot that I bought for £10 last year...survived the whole year being blown around the garden in its pot ...hehehe. brought it in this year and it looked beautiful with all the decorations, it was also twice the size it was when I bought it. I hope it lasts till next year. It felt good not having to pay out for a tree this year...I recommend to anyone to get a potted tree...
I manage a garden centre in Middlesbrough called plantarama, ive suggested to our customers to strip the branches of xmas tree and stack the to decompose in the corner of there garden and the main branch can be cut up into logs and stacked up again in the garden to form a nest for insects. I made a vidio , can be viewed on youtube , just type plantarama, called recycle xmas tree
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Teresa - in theory, yes, you can, but the results may vary. It will have a better chance of survival if it was pot grown, rather than having been grown in a field and then moved to a pot for sale. You'll need to prune the roots as well as the branches, and, eventually, it may lose its traditional Christmas tree shape. No harm in trying though!
Kate
I love your idea too though for a bee hotel. I might do that later this spring when I'm done using it to feed the birds.