By Lisa Green
Some of the best magic at Walt Disney World
is achieved with the careful cultivation and placement of thousands
(and thousands!) of trees, shrubs, bushes, flowers, and topiaries. I’ve
heard staggering statistics on the army of gardeners and
horticulturalists it takes to keep the World looking so beautiful.
Sometimes, Disney park designers and Imagineers come up with incredibly
imaginative uses for trees and, out of necessity, those trees must be
fake! That’s what I want to talk about today. Fake Trees – aka Faux
Flora! There are bunches of fake animals at Disney World, too, but I’ll
save the faux fauna discussion for another day.
This is not an all-inclusive list of every artificial plant in every Disney park – I just want to talk about a few of my favorites ones. Ready?
Swiss Family Robinson Tree – This Adventureland
marvel in Magic Kingdom gets overlooked a lot. Probably because it is
low-tech and, well, a bit boring. The TREE though has been standing
there since the park opened in 1971 looking pretty awesome! Next time
you pass by, at least check out the details of the artificial tree, even
if you don’t want to climb the 116 steps to see how the Family Robinson
lived.
Tomorrowland Palm Trees – They’re sharp-looking and
don’t try to be something they’re not. Perfect for Tomorrowland’s
futuristic feel, these were steampunk before that was even a thing.
The Tree of Life – 50 feet wide and 145 feet tall,
it’s more a work of art than just a fake tree. This completely
artificial plant plays an important role as the icon for Animal
Kingdom. Built using an oil rig for stable frame, this Animal Kingdom
icon boasts over 300 animal carvings, 7891 end branches and more than
102,000 artificial leaves in 5 shades of green. The tree’s roots
shelter the theater for It’s Tough to be a Bug. If I’m on vacation, I
can often be found studying the minute details of the different animal
carvings.
Boabab Trees – You know these trees – they’re the
upside-down-looking ones on Kilimanjaro Safari. Admit it – the safari
just wouldn’t be the same without them!
DiVine – She gets a lot of flack. I hear people dis
this living but artificial figure in Animal Kingdom all the time. I
think she’s cool! If you don’t know what I’m talking about – check out
my DiVine-specific article
here. I haven’t seen her in a while, but make a point to look for her on every visit along the path between Asia and Africa.
Know about any faux flora I’ve left off my list? What fake trees are your favorite at Disney World?
