Fake Plants In Garden?

I keep artificial flowers indoors because my room doesn't get a lot of sunlight and I already have a lot of plants on my windowsill. I wouldn't put fake flowers or plants outdoors because I know that the strong sun would discolor the plants over time.

 

As a hobby I created artificial floral arrangements as housewarming gifts and find them useful to stick in my flower beds until plants and flowers were in full bloom. My backyard is shaded pretty well so I don't have a problem like @steph84 with discoloration. Once my flowerbeds are at their peak I remove the arties and store them away for next season.

 

I would not waste garden space or money on fake plants. When gardening, I try to pack in as many fruit and vegetable plants as I can, so that I can have a bountiful harvest to use to offset my grocery budget. As far as flowers go, we plant perennial plants which come back each year, so that we do not have to buy flowers every spring to plant. That being said, I do have fake flowers in my home to decorate dark spaces with. They can be useful for brightening up a room.

 

Many areas these days have Home Owner Associations, or HOAs. A friend kept getting dinged by them (fines, which amounted to some money she didn't want to keep paying), and she couldn't afford to buy real plants, so she went out and purchased some different types of flowers so she could keep her yard looking nice, and wouldn't keep getting fines from the HOA. She would replace the flowers seasonally. The ones she bought looked nice, and from a distance, it wasn't obvious that they were artificial.

 

I never heard of anyone doing that actually, but one thing they always look nice and you don't have to water them. I used to have some in a hanging basket in the back though until they got faded by the sun. It is just one of the things that you can use I guess if you don't have the time or inclination to care for real plants.

 

Absolutely no way could I ever justify the expensive of filling my garden with fake plants -as apart the fact that it would be horrendously expensive and its actually way, way more cost effective for me - as I a huge amount of land - to use real plants that can be multiplied by cuttings, division or seed - it would be a total waste of money - particularly as - with the extreme climate and strange weather conditions we have here - they'd be looking faded, torn and generally tatty in next to no time.

Also if I were to be totally honest - I have to say that I've always had a strong dislike of anything fake and would generally much prefer to do without - if it comes to choice between fake and real and most definitely when it comes to plants.

Simply because - being a long time gardener - I've always much preferred the real thing - especially as the majority all save money in the long term - for example - ornamental trees, shrubs and perennials - are like never ending gifts - as cuttings, divisions or seeds from them can all be reared to make more plants - for free - which can then be given to friends and neighbors, used to increase the stock in your garden or even sold for a small amount of money and of course anything edible - think it goes without saying - they are always guaranteed - to cut food costs by a huge amount

That said - am not so sure that fake plants would reduce the need to weed - as it certainly wouldn't be so where I am - in fact as weeds grow faster and stronger than any triffid here - its way more likely that you'd never see the fake plants - as the weeds would have smothered them.

 

It is always good to have both kind of plants to create a better looking ambience in any garden, I currently have a mix within artificial and natural plants in the back of my house, they look really cool when mixed, well, it will always depend on the kind of plants you have and the colors as well, even when it might be considered as a waste, it is always going to be worth it if you like it.

 

It's okay with me to have artificial plants and flowers as long as they enhance the look of the garden. However, my husband is against the idea because he is a real gardener who wants mostly edible plants and fruit trees. That's why he agreed with me to put in some flowering plants in the garden instead of the plastic plants for decoration. Nothing beats natural, he says.

 

I think it depends where you put the plants. If they are hanging baskets where no one will notice that they are artificial it's fine. I must say that there are some silk flowers I've seen that really look real. In my lower garden beds I like to have real plants that flower. They are great for adding colour and creating a warm inviting atmosphere by the pool. I also enjoy taking care of a garden and watching the plants flourish. In the long run artificial flowers would be a cost saver but I would lose the enjoyment of watering my plants each day.

 

Flowers are not my thing, and I was never fond of them, so I wouldn't have fake or real plants either way in my garden. I don't even like watering them in the first place, lol.

 

I have never heard of anyone doing this sort of thing before. I think all plants and flowers outdoors should be real. I do not mind having fake flowers on my dining room table, but having them outside seems a bit tacky to me. I guess if silk flowers were in a pot on the verandah, that may be okay, although I would prefer real plants there too. Artificial flowers are expensive to begin with, and they would fade out after a while from getting too much sunlight.

 

I don't mind having a fake orchid around the house because real orchids are hard to grow, but I think that artificial plants are a bad idea for outdoor areas because they can get dusty and sun faded. I used to live near an elderly lady who had fake flowers in her yard and they looked weird because the sun had bleached all of the colors out of them.