Residents have hit out at a ‘droopy and browning’ Christmas tree put up in a town centre, dubbing it a ‘Temu special’.

The ‘dying’ fir tree was put up in Wisbech town centre, Cambridgeshire, on November 4, with the council describing it as an ‘absolute disgrace’.

Wisbech Town Council ‘demanded’ another tree from its supplier as they took to social media to let people know that they are ‘aware of the state’ of it.

The ‘half-dead’ tree, believed to have cost around £1.6k, put up in the town centre was brown in places, barely full, and with some branches drooping on the floor.  

One passer-by said: ‘Absolutely diabolical. It’s not even straight. There’s more dead in that than there is green.’    

Local Jon Lilley said he had ‘seen better roadkill!’ and Shaun Taylor joked it was a ‘Temu special.’ 

Another added: ‘This was obviously supplied by Ebeneezer Scrooge. I wonder how many pennies this cost, what a state.’

Whilst a fifth person asked: ‘Was it kept from last Christmas?’ 

The ‘dying’ fir tree was put up in Wisbech town centre, Cambridgeshire, on November 4, with locals describing it as an ‘absolute disgrace’

Wisbech Town Council have ‘demanded’ another tree as they took to social media to let people know that they are ‘aware of the state’ of it and said a new one would be put up

Wisbech Town Council said its supplier blamed an extremely dry summer for the tree not looking its best and confirmed it would be replaced. 

In a post shared on November 4, the town council said: ‘We have immediately been on to the provider and demanded a replacement.’

A Wisbech Town Council spokesperson said: ‘The Christmas tree which has been delivered to Wisbech this year is not of the quality which had been expected by the council.

‘Consequently, the council contacted the supplier of the tree to achieve a remedy to the situation.’

Terry Jordan, the council’s clerk, has since confirmed that the 35ft tree has now been replaced by a shorter one, which stands at 28ft and is a ‘very good healthy specimen’.

He said the supplier had told them that hot weather this year had affected taller trees. 

He said: ‘When we went back to the supplier that’s what they were saying, because of the long period of dry weather trees have found it more difficult to get the nutrients and the water supply that they needed, and I think they said that applied to the larger trees.’

Mr Jordan added after the tree was delivered that ‘on inspection we realised there were some areas where there appeared to be some dead branches and gaps in the tree’.

‘It’s a simple case of like when you order any goods that are not 100%, go back to the supplier,’ said Mr Jordan.

‘They’ve now sent a new tree which has now been installed.

‘That is a very good healthy specimen and we are now happy.’