Donate your Christmas tree to boost angling action

Dec. 22, 2021

Randy Zellers

Assistant Chief of Communications

LITTLE ROCK — Once the wrapping paper has been thrown away and the last drop of egg nog has been consumed, few people have a use for that evergreen tree that graced their home during the holiday season. The Arkansas Game and Fish Commission has a new job for those leftover trees: fish habitat.

The AGFC has drop-off locations across the state to let your old Christmas tree have a second life as underwater cover. The small spaces and dense cover offered by fresh Christmas trees make excellent nursery habitat for small fish as well as great places to fish.

Anglers are welcome to remove trees from drop-off locations to create their own fish attractors. Tying the trees to cinder blocks with parachute cord is a popular option to weight the trees down.

The small branches will deteriorate quickly, so it’s best to sink the trees in groups. The trunks of the trees will last much longer, offering some woody cover long after a single tree’s attractiveness wanes.

Trees should be clean of all ornaments, lights and tinsel before they are dropped off. Artificial Christmas trees should not be used as fish habitat, either.

Trees can be dropped off at any of the following locations until the end of January:

Northwest Arkansas
Beaver Lake – Highway 12 Access, AGFC Don Roufa Highway 412 Access and Monte Ne Boat Ramp Access
Lake Elmdale – Boat Ramp Access
Bob Kidd Lake – Boat Ramp Access
Crystal Lake – Boat Ramp Access

North Arkansas
Bull Shoals Lake – Any U.S. Army Corps of Engineers boat ramp
Norfork Lake – Any U.S. Army Corps of Engineers boat ramp

Northeast Arkansas
Jonesboro – Craighead Forest Park Lake boat ramp
Lake Bono – Boat Ramp Access
Lake Walcott – Crowley’s Ridge State Park Boat Ramp Access
Lake Charles – West parking lot at Highway 25 Boat Ramp Access

Central Arkansas
Arkansas River – Riverview Park Access in North Little Rock
Lake Barnett – Reed Access
Lake Conway – Lawrence Landing Access
Greers Ferry Lake – Sandy Beach (Heber Springs), Devils Fork Recreation Area and Choctaw Recreation Area (Choctaw-Clinton)
Harris Brake Lake – Chittman Hill Access
Lake Pickthorne – Boat Ramp Access
Lake Overcup – Lake Overcup Landing
Cox Creek Lake – Cox Creek Lake Public Access
Lake Hamilton – Andrew Hulsey State Fish Hatchery Access Area
Jack Nolen – Boat Ramp Access at Fire Station
Sugar Loaf Lake – Boat Ramp Access

East Arkansas
Horseshoe Lake — Boat Ramp Access
Wynne Sports Complex Family and Community Fishing Pond

Southeast Arkansas
Lake Chicot – Connerly Bayou Access Area
Lake Monticello – Hunger Run Access
Cook’s Lake – Potlatch Conservation Education Center at 625 Cook’s Lake Road, Casscoe, or the bus lot across from Grand Avenue United Methodist Church in Stuttgart

South Arkansas
Camden – AGFC Regional Office on Ben Lane, next to the National Guard Armory
Upper White Oak Lake – Upper Jack’s Landing
Magnolia – Columbia County Road Department Yard on Highway 371
El Dorado – City recycling center drop-offs: one behind Arby’s and one on South Jackson
Smackover – Recycling Drop-Off Center (these will be transported to El Dorado)

Southwest Arkansas
Bois d’Arc Lake – Kidd’s Landing or Hatfield Access
Millwood Lake – Cottonshed, White Cliffs Recreation Areas and the Millwood State Park ramp on the point
Dierks Lake – Jefferson Ridge South Recreation Area
De Queen Lake – Any U.S. Army Corps of Engineers boat ramp
Gillham Lake – Any U.S. Army Corps of Engineers boat ramp
Lake Greeson – New Cowhide Cove and Self Creek Recreation areas
South Fork Lake – South Fork Lake Access
Terre Noire Lake – Terre Noire Lake Access
Hope – AGFC Regional Office on U.S. Highway 67 East
Lake Dieffenbacher – Bobby Ferguson Park Pavilion