“And have you seen how the French wrap gifts?” he asked in a phone interview this week. “They wrap without tape!” That’s a boon for gift-getters who want to make sure once-used Hanukkah and Christmas wrapping doesn’t go to waste. “It’s the tape that destroys the paper,” Mr. Stark said knowingly.

Kwanzaa seems tailor-made for the eco-friendly movement. Celebrated in December for seven days, the holiday was created in 1966 to celebrate African values and culture. Gifts are traditionally handmade, to show respect for family ancestors.

Eco-friendly merrymaking has been embraced for decades. It just happens to go in and out of public consciousness. In 2009, Barack and Michelle Obama decorated their 18½-foot tree at the White House with LED lights that consume less energy than traditional bulbs. They also used 800 recycled ornaments from previous administrations, which were refurbished and hung on the tree.

LED lights remain quite popular. And ornaments, which can be reused for decades, have their own appeal. Mr. Fulk said he spends two weeks in Montana at Christmas and buys a live tree that later gets planted. “It only stays fresh for about 10 days inside,” he said. “But if you don’t mind not having a tree up for a month, it’s fine.”

Mr. Fulk plans events for Silicon Valley’s wealthy technorati, and many of his wealthy clients still want sumptuous flower displays at holiday parties. That sometimes gives him pause. “You don’t want this stuff to just end up in the garbage,” he said, So Mr. Fulk whisks bouquets away after the last guests leave and distributes them to local charities.

He said mistletoe, a parasitic plant that has benefited from smart marketing, grows on the oak trees at his ranch in Napa Valley and is used for holiday decorations. “We forage when we go on hikes,” he said.

[If you want to measure your impact on the environment, you can do so using a carbon footprint calculator.]