Turf is the toughest of the three outdoors. It convinces at a distance and less so close up. Sphagnum moss looks right up close, but someone must water it every few days in summer. Artificial boxwood foliage reads as clipped hedging. The same welded animal takes all three, and the covering decides more about owning it than the creature does.
The three coverings side by side: turf on a Stegosaurus, moss on a pair, artificial foliage on a third. The covering decides the upkeep more than the animal does.
Turf: the tough one
Turf is the toughest of the three outdoors. It is dense short artificial grass, cut and fitted over a molded shell. The large public pieces are finished in it.
Upkeep: an occasional rinse, and nothing else until the turf fades.
Weather: sun is the only weather that bothers turf. The published range on the pieces we sell runs from −58°F to 122°F, so temperature is not the constraint. Turf fades slowly in sun, and when it does the piece is re-covered rather than replaced, because the frame underneath outlives several skins.
How close it reads: well at distance, less well close up. At arm’s length you can see the blade pattern and the seams between panels. If people will walk right up to it and photograph it, look at the seam placement before you buy.
Moss: the convincing one, and the one you water
Moss is the most convincing at arm’s length and the softest of the three. It is sphagnum packed by hand over a frame with closer rod spacing.
Upkeep: water it when the moss feels dry. In summer sun that can be every day or two. Then either plant into it within about six months, so a living surface takes over, or work fresh sphagnum in once or twice a year.
Weather: drainage under the piece matters more than the forecast. Standing water is the reliable killer. Cold on its own is not usually what finishes a mossed piece; the moss dulls over winter and picks up again.
How close it reads: best of the three. The fibers are real and irregular, so nothing repeats, and you can see it was packed by a person. The full account is in how a mossed animal is made and kept.
Artificial boxwood foliage: reads as a clipped hedge
Artificial boxwood is molded leaves on a mesh, fitted over the shell. It reads as a clipped hedge rather than as grass, so it suits formal settings and figures that are meant to look planted rather than sculpted.
Upkeep: none, beyond rinsing dust off.
Weather: the UV rating decides it, more than the seasons do. This is the covering where that rating matters most, because a large covered area fades all at once. Read what UV-rated means before you order.
How close it reads: middling. At distance it beats turf, because the leaf shape is right. Up close it loses to moss, because molded leaves repeat.
Choosing, in one pass
A public site, nobody to look after it, years of weather: turf. It needs a rinse and nothing else, and temperature inside the published range does not touch it. That is why the large public pieces are finished in it.
A garden with an owner who enjoys it, and close viewing: moss, and plan to plant into it. Rule moss out if nobody will be there to water it in summer.
A formal setting, or a piece meant to read as clipped hedging: artificial boxwood, UV-rated for the aspect. Check the rating against the sun that spot gets before you order.
Indoors: any of the three. Moss gets easier indoors because there is no sun drying it out and no rain to pool under it, though if you plant into it the planting still needs light. Preserved foliage is the fourth option indoors and the most convincing of the four, as long as the position takes no direct sun.
What does not change: the frame underneath
The armature underneath is the same decision whichever covering you choose: welded steel, galvanized or powder-coated. It outlives every skin that goes on it, so a tired sculpture is usually a re-cover rather than a replacement. Ask what is inside a piece before you ask what is on it.
Quoted. Turf: the outdoor workhorse.
$1,550. Moss: the one that needs watering.
Quoted. Artificial foliage: reads as clipped hedging.
Browse the sculpture range in the sculpture category, and the mossed animals here. Anything specified from scratch is a commission.
Questions we get asked
Which covering lasts longest outdoors?
Turf, on the large pieces. The published temperature range runs from minus 58 to 122 Fahrenheit. When the turf eventually fades, the piece is re-covered rather than replaced.
Which looks most realistic close up?
Moss, by a distance. The fibers are real and irregular, so nothing repeats, and you can see it was packed by hand. Turf reads well at distance and shows its seams close to. Artificial boxwood sits between the two.
Does a mossed sculpture need watering?
Yes. Water it when the moss feels dry, which in summer sun can be every day or two. Then either plant into it within about six months or work fresh sphagnum in once or twice a year.
Can I change the covering later?
On a steel-framed piece, usually. The frame outlives every skin that goes on it, so a tired sculpture is often a re-cover rather than a replacement.
What about indoors?
All three work indoors. Moss becomes much easier with no sun to dry it and no rain to pool under it. Preserved foliage is the fourth option indoors and the most convincing, though it cannot take direct sun.
