Turns out man can make better plants and trees than mother nature, as we’ve discovered in the news this week.
Silk trees that absorb the same amount of CO2 as 90 eucalyptus trees are
being tested in Spain to help reduce emissions from cars and factories. The trees, which look like lamp posts and can be customized to blend in with surroundings -- similar to
silk tree cell phone tower concealment -- have been installed to date in Valencia, Castellon, and Barcelona.
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You might be tempted to think that it's the good looking models holding their summery, fruity drinks that make this restaurant cover photo stand out. We at Commercial Silk Int'l and our live
plant service division Plantscape, Inc., think it's the Bamboo trees -- not that we're biased or anything.
The Bamboo trees you see on this recent Minnesota Monthly cover were recently installed in the new restaurant concept
Cafeteria in Uptown Minneapolis, a trendy post-college neighborhood known for it's vibrant nightlife. Determined to create a beach-like atmosphere on a busy city rooftop, Cafeteria proprietors sourced Plantscape, Inc. for Bamboo trees to compliment natural wood benches, umbrellas, and other touches that make for a laid back outdoor atmosphere.
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Recently
silk trees have made an appearance in Hollywood and the obituaries. Sound incredibly obscure? We thought so too, and here’s a quick run-down.
Initially when we saw
Lady Gaga and silk plants in the same article, we assumed a far-out costume was soon to be referenced, but quickly learned otherwise. Lady Gaga, The current queen of popular culture, unveiled her newest song at Elton John’s infamous White Tie and Tiara Ball. As if Gaga’s costumes weren't spectacle enough, silk trees were used for stage decoration, with performance artists dramatically suspended from the tree limbs.
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This edition of Silk Plants and Trees In The News brings us a few oddball stories from around the country and confirms that truth is indeed stranger than fiction.
A reminder that you probably haven’t seen it all comes courtesy of artist Justin Shull. Something in his artist brain told him to construct a mobile shrub rover made of silk plants. The rover, which appears from the video to be able to handle both normal streets and off-road conditions, has a side hatch door revealing a box shaped compartment with enough room to fit a lone driver. No windows, no problem. The roving shrub is also outfitted with cameras and small LCD screens inside for navigation.
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With technology becoming more and more a part of our daily lives it was only a matter of time before the silk plant industry got in the game. As you'll see in the examples below, faux plants are being used as soil meters, humidifiers and cloak and dagger spy tools reminiscent of your favorite James Bond movies. Not surprisingly, the "devices" discussed perform many of the same functions as normal silk plants -- to enhance, shape, or disguise contraptions or sights that are best served hidden.
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We wrote recently about concealing cell towers with silk plants and trees, and soon after there was more news about a Chicago neighborhood evaluating concealment options for a particularly
obtrusive tower in scenic Westridge. Fortunately for the community, many concerned residents have stepped up to demand that they get a high quality artificial tree solution. Done right, the cell phone tower won't be an eyesore and visitors will hardly notice it.
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You can decide for yourself whether the iPad is truly a revolutionary device or just a passing fad. We were excited to learn, regardless, that there is a new app game for the iPad called
Plants vs. Zombies. In this tower defense game, your job is to plant a variety of foliage that shoot thorns and other plant-style armaments to stop zombies from entering your house.
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Trade show designers and exhibitors have turned to artificial plants and trees recently, sprucing up (no pun intended) their booths while streamlining logistics. It makes sense: you put countless hours into the design, ship it out, set it up, wear out your shoes and jaw standing and talking for three days, pack it up, and send it off to the next one. You better be efficient, and you better have a design that stands out from your competitors next door.
A few benefits of going silk:
- Staying fresh. For booths that move from show to show, live plants are not cost-effective. Silk plants don't wilt or lose their leaves in shipping and only need a little touch up to look good as new.
- Creating themes. Booth designers have used Commercial Silk Int'l silk plants and trees to convey forest themes, such as this Aspen Rocky Mountain booth for guitar company Two Old Hippies, and this Central Park booth for The Ladders.
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Carrie Underwood likes to make a splash in her personal and professional life, whether it's dating Coybows star quarterback Tony Romo, or screaming out lyrics on stage. Recently, though, she's taken it to new heights with her concert set design, which featured a virtual fake forest and a rope swing hanging from a giant artificial tree limb.
Our beloved US government, known for it's slowness and insatiable appetite for paperwork, put out a bid looking for a company to water its artificial plants. To be fair, the contract did also call for watering live plants. Bidders with a GSA Contract were expected to submit a quote on a very short deadline prior to the end of the department fiscal year, which may have led to the editorial oversight.
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In Brockton, MA this week, a judge ordered a car wash owner to remove artificial grass he had installed on his business property, citing the dictionary definition of landscaping in his ruling. The owner had installed it because of how impractical and expensive it was to maintain real grass in his place of business, and is vowing to appeal the decision.
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