- Tree goes up
- Typically just a few days before Christmas (“Julgran” brought in close to the holiday), with exact timing varying by family
- Tree comes down
- 13 January (“Tjugondag Knut” / St Knut’s Day), when the formal season closes with “julgransplundring” — a ritual “plundering” of the tree’s sweets and decorations, often accompanied by dancing around it before it is thrown out
- Local superstition
- Julgransplundring is treated as a joyful, almost theatrical ritual rather than a superstition — but leaving the tree up beyond Tjugondag Knut is considered unusual.
Why that date
Swedish tradition historically kept the tree out of the house until close to Christmas itself, reflecting practical norms around real trees and a broader Nordic emphasis on Christmas Eve as the main event.
What actually happens
The Swedish Christmas season formally spans 24 December to 13 January — a full 20 days (“tjugondag” means “twentieth day”) — distinctly longer than the 12-day English tradition, and ends with a distinctive tree-plundering party rather than a quiet takedown.
Taking it down again
13 January (“Tjugondag Knut” / St Knut’s Day), when the formal season closes with “julgransplundring” — a ritual “plundering” of the tree’s sweets and decorations, often accompanied by dancing around it before it is thrown out. Julgransplundring is treated as a joyful, almost theatrical ritual rather than a superstition — but leaving the tree up beyond Tjugondag Knut is considered unusual.
If you would rather not have this argument again next year, the calendar reminder on the home page will put both dates straight into your phone.
Sources
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