Tropical Trees

Tropical artificial trees are the broad-leafed species - banana, traveller palm, mangrove and similar large-foliage forms. They deliver more visual mass per piece than anything else in the catalogue, which makes them the fastest way to give a room a resort, spa or poolside character. Hotels, spas and event stylists use them where one plant has to do a great deal of work.

What is the difference between a tropical tree and a palm?

Palms are one branch of the tropical family, defined by fronds radiating from a single crown on an unbranched trunk. The broader tropical group here includes banana and traveller palm, which carry huge paddle-shaped leaves rather than divided fronds, and mangrove-type forms with a low spreading branch structure. The practical difference is footprint and sightline. A palm is narrow at the base and wide at the top, so furniture can sit underneath it. A banana or traveller palm is wide from about waist height upward and will block a view - useful for screening, unhelpful in a small room. Browse Artificial Palm Trees.

Can artificial tropical trees go beside a pool?

Poolside is where they are most often specified, because nothing living looks right there without a great deal of care. Chlorine splash, reflected heat off hard surfaces and constant foot traffic are all hard on real planting, and a faux specimen takes leaf litter out of the water entirely. Choose pieces specified for outdoor placement rather than indoor ones, keep the planter clear of the wet zone or use one that drains, and rinse dust off the leaves with a hose occasionally. That is the whole maintenance routine. See Pools and Patios.

How to choose the right size

Budget for spread, not just height. A tropical specimen at a given height is roughly twice as wide as a conifer or an olive of the same height, so measure clear floor diameter before you measure the ceiling. Indoors, allow a walkway that does not brush the foliage, because large paddle leaves crease and stay creased. For screening a view or dividing a terrace, two or three medium tropicals in a line work better than one tall specimen. See Outdoor Trees.

Frequently asked questions

A leaf arrived creased. How do we fix that?

Warm the crease gently with a hair dryer on a low setting, held a short distance away, then reshape the leaf by hand while it is warm and hold it in position for a few seconds as it cools. This works on most polyethylene paddle leaves, including banana and bird of paradise. A sharp fold that has sat for a long time under packaging pressure may leave a faint line even after reshaping, which is normal at this leaf size.

How do we clean a tropical tree indoors?

Wipe large paddle leaves individually with a damp cloth rather than dusting, since their broad flat surface shows dust more than fine foliage does and a wipe is just as quick. Smaller-leafed pieces such as areca palm or monstera respond well to a feather duster or a cool hair dryer setting worked into the fronds.

What does unboxing and setup involve?

The trunk or main stem usually arrives in one or two sections with the leaves folded flat against it, so setup is standing the piece, joining any sections, and unfolding each leaf or frond by hand to its natural angle. Multi-stem pieces such as areca palm take longer to open out fully than a single-trunk banana or bird of paradise.

Does the height listed include the planter?

Yes, treat the stated figure as the full assembled height, plant plus pot, unless the product page says otherwise. Because tropical species spread wide as well as tall, also check the canopy width against your floor space, not just the height against the ceiling.

How does a faux monstera or bird of paradise compare with a real one?

Both are genuinely demanding houseplants in most Canadian homes: they want high humidity and bright, indirect light well beyond what a typical living room provides, and they grow large enough that a real specimen eventually outgrows the spot it was bought for. A faux version gives the same broad-leaf tropical look at a fixed size indefinitely, with no light or humidity requirement at all.