One particularly disorganised year, we bought a tree with roots in a pot from a supermarket reduced to £5. It was about 1m tall.
We brought it inside every year. It lasted 5 years by which time it was almost touching the living room ceiling and we repotted it once. I have no gardening skills and one summer it just randomly died.
It mostly died from lack of water which can be from damage the session before.
Many growers have offered for a few years now option to rent a tree thats pot grown. This model is quite popular with community based companies and open farms. Some let you label it and rent the same one over next few years. Once too big they plant them out and they become stock. The next big thing coming over over the next few years is organically grown ones the industry has been working with the soil association for years on it. The 1st few should be out it time for this Christmas.
Generally I always say buy direct from a grower most of the ones you buy have been shipped in and get cut down months before.
Precut always use a stand than hold water and top it up every day with good pint full. How ever you buy a precut always cut off a good few inch from the base into fresh wood. Then a good 24 hours before you bring them in leave it standing in bucket of water.