I certainly would never say go fake plants. There are lots of plants that love rainy weather and if you want an oasis fake greenery is not the right way to go. Go to a garden center and see what you can plant that is evergreen and i would be there are lots for the Seattle area, then during the different seasons add some color .

I agree. Can't love the artificial plant idea. I would include a structure if you are trying to block that pole like a trellis or lattice and then soften that with plants that will survive cold rainy winters.

Consider a wood planter with a trellis and actual English Ivy if it would grow in your planting zone year round.

Would not want fake flowers, however, artificial ivy might be worth considering to hide that utility box and provide a bit of privacy without fully blocking the window and natural light:

https://www.hooksandlattice.com/silk-ivy-trellis.html.

Oh wow, I LOVE the idea of the wooden slat boxes and native grasses. Do you know where I could get the wooden slat planters?

Wood planters w/trellis:

https://www.google.com/search?q=shop+wood+planters+w/trellis&source=lnms&tbm=shop&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwj67uPY4ZDdAhUS2FMKHWfEDdsQ_AUICygC&biw=1366&bih=650

Hayneedle.com has nice planters... check out the “Belham” slat wood planter, nice size

So many pretty live plants for you in Seattle!

The OP's challenge may be finding evergreen plants that will survive the winters. Having something that dies back to bare branches during the winter will negate privacy during that period. That said, I fully agree to do some research both online and at professional nurseries -- do NOT rely on folks working at HD or Lowes.

While ivy looks nice, it is also highly invasive in many areas. (Check with your local univerisity or county extension offices to find out if it is a problem plant in your area.)

A trellis has strong possibilites. For summer greenery and flowers, you could check to see if there are clematis which would survive the winter on your balcony. Otherwise, you might have to look at annual vines to train up the trellis for summer interest. For the winter, you could consider decorating the trellis with seasonal items -- either artificial or not -- such as dry cornstalks + small pumpkins/gourds for autumn, and evergreen boughs or wreaths for winter.

In addition to the trellis idea, if your balcony has the space, I'd say consider checking into a large planter with an evergreen tree/shrub. I would expect there will be ones available in your area that would survive your winters.

someone could make those for you as well...

Native plants in boxes may do well with a little shelter in the cold winters. Some people do like to stick in a few silk flowers around March or so. Daffodils, forsythia, redbud all can look pretty natural. The key is that the fakes look as plausible as the real thing in that location (not tropical orchids in mid winter Seattle), just a bit earlier than the real things will bloom.

In the days before digital photography, I saw set decorators for commercials hand wire the "right color" roses to plants so they'd match the color of the car being advertised.

Real plant walls require a lot of sunlight and expensive irrigation systems, not to mention pruning and soil all over the place. VistaFolia offers everything you can get with real plants without all the mess. A lot of our clients are moving to use our artificial green walls as privacy screens and they can be custom built to size of shape.

upscapers