Artificial Garden Trees

Ficus

• Ficus trees have small oval bright green leaves. Artificial trees may have one straight trunk, be multi-trunked or, more unusually, have a braided trunk. Use the trees inside a family room or outside on a very shady patio. Outfit larger trees with twinkle lights for an evening glow. Artificial trees are from 4 to 8 feet tall.

Flowering

• Lots of live trees flower in the spring before the trees bud out. That looks odd for an artificial tree so most are shown with both leaves and flowers. Artificial trees include citrus such as lemon and lime, which sometimes have artificial fruits on the branches as well as flowers. Wisteria is a short artificial tree with pendulous clusters of flowers hanging from the undersides of the branches. Colors include pink, purple and white. Other artificial trees aren't specific to a true variety but show off brightly colored flowers on the branches. Create your own flowering tree by gluing small flowers on a ficus tree.

Bonsai

• Bonsai are full-size trees that have been miniaturized through keeping the tree's branches and roots trimmed. They are not dwarf trees. Dwarf trees have either been bred to stay small, or have the scion, the branched part of the tree, grafted to a dwarf trunk and root. It's a challenge to keep a bonsai growing well inside. They require the dormancy period that the variety would normally get in their environment. For example, a bonsai Japanese Maple would need to be exposed to cold weather for a number of months. Use artificial bonsai trees as an accent in a spa bathroom or sophisticated living-room decor. Olive trees, junipers and maple are few trees that make good bonsai specimens. Most bonsai look best with smaller leaves.

Holiday

• On a small lot with a limited garden area you may not want to devote space for pine trees but still want that evergreen look for the holidays. Or perhaps you would like a pair of topiary evergreens standing guard at your shaded entryway. Artificial evergreens come in natural shapes, pruned as standard topiaries -- a sphere on a straight trunk, and spiral topiaries. Sizes range from tabletop to 10 feet tall.