Artificial Plants for Property Staging & Show Homes
This page is for home stagers, show-home stylists, developers' interiors teams and furniture-hire businesses. The finder below opens on plants that come already in a decorative planter, so a piece can go straight from the van into a room, with exact live stock on every line.
- 49 lines
- Exact live stock
- Trade prices when logged in
- £150 ex VAT minimum
Register online, log in to see trade prices.
Why stagers use artificial planting
Planting is one of the quickest ways to make a room look lived in, bright and cared for, and it photographs well. Living plants do not suit staging: empty properties are not watered, heating is off or on at odd times, and a dead plant in a viewing does more harm than none. Artificial planting stays the same from the first photograph to the last viewing, needs only dusting, and moves on to the next property when the sale completes.
Ready-potted versus pot and planter
Ready-potted lines, such as the 100cm dracaena in a gold planter or the 130cm onion grass in a copper planter, save time on every install and every move. Plants in plain weighted pots cost less per piece and let you change the look by swapping planters, but need a planter on site. Many stagers do both: ready-potted hero pieces, and a stock of plain-potted plants with a set of neutral planters. The ready-potted finder covers the first group and the plant and planter fit finder the second.
Room by room
- Entrance and hallway: one tall, narrow piece, such as a bamboo or twisted-trunk ficus, or a small plant on a console. Keep the door swing clear.
- Living room: a floor-standing tree of 120cm to 180cm in a corner, plus one or two smaller plants on shelving or a coffee table. The ficus and olive ranges suit most interiors.
- Kitchen: herbs-style small pots, a trailing plant on an open shelf, or an arrangement on the island. Keep planting away from the hob.
- Dining room: a low arrangement or orchid that does not block the view across the table.
- Bedrooms and bathrooms: small plants, foliage stems in a vase, or a trailing plant high up.
- Balconies and gardens: UV-stabilised topiary, bay and grasses, weighted against wind.
Keep to a restrained palette. Green, white and one accent read as calm and aspirational in photographs; a room full of different flower colours reads as clutter. Scale matters as much as colour: one generous plant looks intentional, while several small ones spread around a room look like leftovers. In photographs, a tree placed just behind a sofa or beside a window adds depth without hiding the room.
Building a reusable staging stock
Staging stock is used again and again, so buy with transport in mind:
- Choose lines with robust stems and weighted pots that survive a van journey.
- Keep the original boxes, or long boxes for trees, and pack foliage loosely so leaves are not crushed.
- Dust and reshape each piece when it comes back from a property, before it goes out again.
- Hold sets of matching pieces so a style can be repeated across a development. Check live stock covers the set before you commit, because we do not reserve stock.
Balconies, terraces and gardens
Only UV-stabilised lines should go outside, such as topiary pairs by a front door.
UV-stabilised lines contain UV inhibitors that slow colour fade in bright and outdoor positions. All artificial foliage fades gradually in prolonged direct sun; UV-stabilised stock fades far more slowly than untreated stock. We don't publish a lifespan, so plan to inspect exposed pieces each season and rotate or replace them when the colour drops.
Because staging is usually short term, gradual fade is rarely an issue on a single property, but it will build up on stock used outside repeatedly.
Show homes and marketing suites
Show homes and sales suites on developments stay dressed for months and are visited by the public. Weight or fix floor-standing trees, keep routes clear, and keep all planting away from heaters, fires and candles. If the developer's fire risk assessment calls for fire-retardant planting, use the lines flagged in the fire-retardant finder; test reports are available to trade customers on request.
Register online, log in to see trade prices. The minimum order is £150 ex VAT and UK mainland delivery is free on orders of £300 ex VAT or more; full terms are on ordering and delivery. Register online to see trade prices, or email sales@leafdesignwholesale.co.uk to book a visit to our Louth trade showroom (by appointment).
Frequently asked questions
Will artificial plants cope with an empty property between viewings?
Yes. They need no watering or light, so an unheated or unoccupied property does not affect them. They do collect dust, so give them a quick dust before photography and key viewings. If a property sits on the market for a long time with strong sun on a window, move pieces away from the glass.
How do I transport staging plants without damaging them?
Pack them in their original boxes or in long boxes for trees, keep foliage loose rather than crushed, and stand floor-standing pieces upright where possible. Weighted pots help pieces stay upright in the van. After each job, dust the plants and reshape leaves and branches by hand before they go out again.
Should I buy plants already in planters?
Ready-potted pieces are fastest to install and move, which suits hero pieces used in every property. Plain weighted pots with separate planters cost less per piece and let you change the look with the planter. Many stagers hold a mix. The two finders linked on this page cover each approach.
Can I use artificial plants on a balcony or in a garden when staging?
Use only UV-stabilised lines outside, such as topiary pairs, bay, buxus and grasses, and weight them against wind. UV-stabilised stock contains UV inhibitors that slow colour fade, but all artificial foliage fades gradually in prolonged sun, so rotate outdoor pieces through your stock and inspect them between jobs.
What is the minimum order for staging stock?
The minimum order is £150 ex VAT, with no per-line minimum, so you can build a mixed staging kit in one order. Every plant, tree and stem is sold individually. UK mainland delivery is £14.99, or free on orders of £300 ex VAT or more.
