Answer: Ukraine

Legend has it that a very poor family in a small village in Ukraine could not afford their own Christmas tree so they grew one from a pine cone in the ground.

When the tree was tall enough, they took it out one Christmas and used it as their Christmas tree.

The children went to bed sad that they were too poor to afford Christmas decorations for the tree.

That Christmas Eve night, an entire nest of spiders crawled on the tree and spun some webs.

In the morning as the children gathered around the tree, they saw what looked liked Christmas decorations.

When the curtains were drawn, the sun’s rays shone through and created a magical effect of glowing silver and gold clouds.

The family never felt poor again.

Some say it is based around a true story while others say it is folklore – but is said to be one of the main reasons Christmas tinsel came into use.

It has led to the people of Ukraine decorating the Christmas tree with spider webs to this day, as it is believed to bring good luck for the following year.

These days, cotton wool or string and wire are often used as substitutes.