Artificial flowers are a wonderful alternative to real plants. However, in addition to their advantages, they also offer a number of disadvantages.
Can you imagine living without plants? For me that is really unthinkable. Unfortunately, almost all of my beloved orchids died in my old apartment due to the poor lighting conditions. So I went out and just bought artificial orchids. These look so deceptively real that you only notice them at second glance between the real orchids in my house. However, artificial flowers do not only have advantages.
What are the advantages of artificial plants?
Artificial plants are extremely practical and have many advantages over real specimens. These can be summarized as follows:
- Easy Care: No need to water or prune.
- No diseases: Waterlogging often causes numerous diseases to develop. Since artificial plants are not watered, there is no waterlogging. Likewise, the formation of mold is prevented, which likes to form in the course of waterlogging and whose spores then get into the air.
- No bugs: Some insects can ruin the whole plant when infested. However, insects or pests do not even settle on artificial plants.
- Location irrelevant: Some plants need partial shade, others full sun. This is irrelevant for artificial plants.
- Always in bloom: With real plants it is completely natural that they bloom at certain times and usually only once a year. However, artificial plants always bloom no matter what the season.
- Longevity: If you take good care of your artificial plants, you will benefit from them for a long time. They don't have an expiration date, while some other plants die after one season and need to be replaced.
- Diversity: There is such a variety of artificial plants on the market that it is difficult to decide. There are even some artificial plants in colors that do not exist in their natural form.
- Pet Friendly: Unfortunately, some pets love plantsnibble on - not infrequently with the result that they become ill or even poison themselves. Accordingly, artificial plants are clearly the better alternative to poisonous indoor plants.
These advantages alone are a reason for many people to opt for artificial plants.
The disadvantages of artificial plants
In addition to the advantages, you should of course also keep an eye on the disadvantages. These are listed as follows:
- Plastic: Most artificial plants are made of plastic, while the petals are made of silk or some other fabric. The production of plastic costs resources and is not particularly environmentally friendly.
- Quickly exposed: Many of them lack details in terms of feel. They are quickly revealed once you touch them.
- Indoor climate: While real plants can change the air in a room, this is of course not the case with artificial plants. This means that pollutants hanging in the air may also remain in the room.
- No change: An artificial plant keeps its shape and does not change. On the one hand, this is an advantage because you don't have to prune it regularly, but the experience of how a plant develops over time and the joy of it are completely missing.
- No Scent: Artificial plants smell like plastic, if at all. Of course, you won't find the pleasant scent of different flowers on them.
- Cost: While natural plants cost money in the long run, artificial specimens do. In addition, the price of the artificial plant can be higher the more natural it looks.
Due to these disadvantages, it is often recommended that artificial plants only be used as a supplement to the natural variant. They are ideal as decoration, but in no way replace some of the advantages that a naturally grown plant brings with it.
Which artificial plants are the most popular?
The variety of artificial plants offered on the market is huge. However, those who are just starting to furnish their home with artificial plants are often overwhelmed with which one to choose. These are the most popular artificial plants that you can find almost anywhere:
- Ficus Trees
- Bamboo
- Cacti and Succulents
- Orchids
- Artificial Cut Flowers
- palm trees
When choosing theOf course, personal taste also plays a role when choosing the right plants. The artificial plant may serve a specific purpose or should be particularly beneficial to the look of the room. You should also take this into account when buying and therefore not just go by popularity.
Clean Artificial Plants
Once in a while it is necessary to clean the artificial growths. Dust accumulates on them, giving the plant an unattractive appearance.
First and foremost, the type of cleaning depends on the material used, but also on its size. Therefore, here is a small overview:
| Cleaning type | Notes |
|---|---|
| Shower | only suitable for larger plants rinse carefully with lukewarm water then allow to dry thoroughly only use with plastic plants if possible |
| Air Pressure | possible especially with larger plants keep distance to the plant |
| Vacuum Cleaner | use the lowest setting only applicable to larger, hardy plants |
| wipe with a damp cloth | suitable for plastic plants use mild detergent dry well afterwards |
| Brushes | especially useful for silk flowers handle flowers carefully |
For the care of artificial plants, the trade also offers special cleaning agents and sprays. These can be used particularly well when it comes to a filigree specimen that can be quickly damaged under water or when rubbing a cloth.
Cleaning frequency varies. Some artificial plants attract more dust than others. In general, however, it is recommended to clean them thoroughly about four to five times a year.
For the plants that are placed outdoors, there is also the option of treating them with UV protection. This ensures that the colors appear radiant even after a long time and do not fade so quickly. This treatment is recommended twice a year.
Warning: If you are dealing with artificial plants that are used in a terrarium, for example, you should also disinfect them. In addition, a special, suitable cleaning agent should always be used when cleaning them.