Decorations, baubles and lights add festive cheer to your home in winter - but is it too early to put them up in November?

There are two types of people when it comes to the Christmas season.

It’s a yearly struggle between those who live and breathe the most wonderful time of the year, and the Scrooges who grudge festive celebrations.

We all know someone who fits the former description.

Some people put their Christmas trees and decorations up as early as November (Shutterstock)

They listen to Christmas songs all year round, and if it were socially acceptable to put up a tree in summer, tinsel and all, they would probably do it.

Especially after an unprecedented and tough year, many people are looking forward to Christmas as an escape from reality and are keen to put up their trees as soon as possible.

Unfortunately, there are a few Christmas traditions in place that mean trees should be put up and decorated at a very specific time of the year.

If you want to avoid judgemental looks from your neighbours, it’s probably best to wait until then to make your house a festive haven.

When should you put up your Christmas tree?

Traditionally, Christmas trees should be put up and decorated at the beginning of Advent, an important period of the Christian calendar.

Advent marks the weeks before the birth of Jesus, and this time is supposed to be used in preparation for Christmas Day.

Advent always begins on the fourth Sunday before Christmas, and this year that falls on Sunday 29 November.

That means it actually is acceptable to put up your Christmas tree and decorations in November if you’re one of the early birds.

But be warned - a real pine tree only lasts for about four weeks, so putting one up at the end of November could be a little risky.

For this reason, The British Christmas Tree Growers Association (BCTGA) recommends buying your tree at the beginning of December if you want it to last throughout the holiday season.

For those who are less organised, or simply less keen on the idea of a November Christmas tree, there’s another tradition where people put up their trees 12 days before the big day.

This is probably the more common time to put up festive decorations, although there are always some Grinches who leave it as late as Christmas Eve.

In the past, decorations and trees weren’t actually put up until Christmas Eve - and anything earlier was considered unlucky.

When should you put up a Christmas tree? Date of advent and the 12 days of Christmas in 2020 - and when to take your tree down