Should you be one of those people among our readers who celebrates the Christmas holiday, you might be interested in having a greener Christmas.

Did you know, for example, that it's greener to have a real Christmas tree than a plastic one, unless you keep the plastic tree many years? The real ones are more carbon neutral, you see. And they do smell rather lovely too.

But how will you light it? Nissan in Japan has thought of a novel idea--a Leaf-powered Christmas tree.

DON'T MISS: Don't Deep Fry Your Christmas Turkey, Roast It With An Aventador: Video

Okay, so it might not be practical for everyone, but it does work rather well in this particular Japanese shopping mall, Futako Tamagawa Rise in Tokyo. Modern LED Christmas lights use very little power, so the Leaf's battery should be more than enough to power the tree for quite some time.

If you chose to use a similar system in your home, the Leaf would work as a great energy storage system for electricity you've generated using solar power, for example, or simply low-cost energy you've accumulated during off-peak times.

Using a system like Nissan's 'Leaf to Home' setup you could then transfer the power back to your house--and your tree--when energy demands are higher, in the evening, when all the lights are shining and you're cooking the day's feast.

Just make sure you keep enough charge in the car for that trip to see the family...

[Hat tip: Brian Henderson]

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