Christmas decorations and a Christmas tree made of invasive plant species
In the scope of the project APPLAUSE we made a Christmas tree out of invasive plant species and then decorated it with decorations painted with natural dyes, also acquired from invasive plants.
The Christmas tree was made at the Department of Wood Science and Technology at the Biotechnical faculty, University of Ljubljana (BF) from the wood of black locust (Robinia pseudoacacia) and honey locust (Gleditsia triacanthos). The glass decorations were made at Faculty of chemistry and chemical technology, University of Ljubljana (FKKT) from used test tubes, which were coloured with natural dyes.
The tree and decorations were made by Jože Planinšič, Luka Krže, Daša Krapež Tomec and Maks Merela from BF as well as Miha Ravbar, Monika Horvat and Jernej Iskra from FKKT.
The wooden cubes were prepared at the Department of Wood Science and Technology from the wood of tree of heaven (Ailanthus altissima) and wild chestnut. The yellow dye was acquired from the roots of japanese knotweed (Reynoutria japonica), while the orange and pink dye were prepared with the chemical modification of that dye. The green dye was isolated from the leaves of staghorn sumac (Rhus typhina) and the red one from its fruits.
We wish you a merry Christmas and a happy new year 2021!