Fake grass ?

Why do we have grass lawns when they do suffer in droughts? I know they'll recover but the camomile and other herbs in our garden and self-serve in the lawn seem to be surviving well.
Perhaps I'll encourage them and have a camomile and herb lawn instead.

Anything but plastic.

Self-set not self-serve.

I would never have fake grass. Hot, plastic, smelly, ugh. It would also put me off buying a house.

I had a static caravan and the decking was so slippery in the rain so I had it covered in fake grass and it was much better people who passed always commented how nice and realistic it was, the secret is don’t buy the cheapest as you can really see the difference to mid range

Skye17

I would never have fake grass. Hot, plastic, smelly, ugh. It would also put me off buying a house.

It depends on the quality you buy I had it on a balcony of my static and you couldn’t tell the difference it wasn’t smelly and my dog found it comfortable enough to lay on

viceversa if you note my previous ost re ffake grass you,ll see f was because of drainage issues that weren,t fixable even after 30 years and nearly 20,000 in specialists digging up the grass/ground and laying pipes etc.We have real grass at the front of the house which is lovely but its beside the road and not suitable for a toddler and a wild 7 year old to do stunts on.
Is this thread really about the environment? A lot of these posts just come across as snobbish.

My daughter bought a house with fake grass in the small courtyard garden. She's been there for 6 years with her big dog and there's no smell whatsoever. The grass must have been down for 10 years but it still looks good and even in this south facing garden it doesn't seem to get hot. Tbh I'm not a fan but it works well for my daughter who is often away for long periods. She has lots of pots on an automatic watering system and her garden is very pretty and practical.

A bit of research on the Internet mostly from a firm that specialises in artificial grass for dog owners.

They say

Dog urine does smell. Uris acid, ammonia will smell especially in hot weather.

The artificial grass has to be latex free as this bonds with the chemicals in the urine.

The underlying base has to be special too. It must be porous to allow as much urine as possible to pass through to soil. Sand dies t work either. That holds on to the smell.

The grass will need to be cleaned regularly with a cleaner that neutralises the chemicals in urine. If your dog uses it everyday then at least once a week. If you have several dogs, daily.

It also said do take note if people complain or friends stop coming round.😬

There was a whole load of explanation. I can see why the grass n my rented house reeked. It was probably the wrong stuff, on the wrong base and had never been cleaned.

I had my small garden laid to fake grass just over 5 years ago. It was well laid and still looks as good as new. I have a dog who wees in one corner I have never smelt any aroma from that corner. She also loves lying on it even on the hottest days.
Heavy rain drains straight through and I give it an occasional sweep usually in autumn when the leaves are falling.
Best thing I ever had done to the garden.

paddyann why is concern for the environment “snobbish”? On our estate we have turned a scrubby bit of grass into a gravel garden with a great diversity of planting which is fantastic for pollinators and the insect biosystem. A play area has seating areas, swings and soft playbark underfoot instead of the weedy mud that was grass. A small area still has natural lawn , which is totally dried up at the moment, but kids can play football, jump around on it and they aren't worried about it looking pristine. We could have put plastic down because it might be easier/ cheaper but no-one wanted this for environmental reasons.

I am well aware that fake grass is not the best thing for the environment, but lots of things are bad for the environment.

I am considering fake grass as it is so difficult to mow the lawn. The first cut of the year needs to be on hands and knees with shears, which takes several days. I mow the lawn in several stages, stopping for a rest with drink and inhaler in between. I cannot afford to pay a gardener. Sometimes practicalities overrule environmental issues.

"The first cut of the year needs to be on hands and knees with shears, which takes several days"

Why? We have never needed to do that.

Yes, lots of stuff is bad for the environment but why add to it with plastic grass? Perhaps put down gravel and pots?

Driving a car is more harmful t the environment than an artificial lawn.

I am considering fake grass as it is so difficult to mow the lawn. The first cut of the year needs to be on hands and knees with shears, which takes several days. I mow the lawn in several stages, stopping for a rest with drink and inhaler in between. I cannot afford to pay a gardener. Sometimes practicalities overrule environmental issues.

I understand your reasoning, but how much would fake grass cost compared to years of a gardener cutting your lawn? After all it usually only needs cutting for about 6 months of the year.
Just a thought.

Misadventure I do agree. I do not have a car and have not travelled abroad for years. I think that compensates for plastic grass!
Jenniren The ground is so boggy early in the year, the grass cannot be cut until it dries out a bit, by which time it is knee high.
J52 fitting artificial grass would be a one off cost for one or two days labour. A weekly gardener for half the year would be very expensive.

Well no. Not having a car doesn’t compensate for having artificial grass.🤣

Compensate is when you end up back at the starting point

20 - 20 =0

Let’s say pollution of a car is 100 and pollution of artificial grass is 50.

That’s pollution if 150. One is worse than the other but it’s still a total of 150.

There’s no compensation.

You havent not polluted because your pollution is less than someone else’s.

This isn’t an attack on you for wanting artificial grass. It’s a know and of mathematical/linguistic thing that caught my fancy🙂

Do what suits you Elusivebutterfly.
Just be sure to get a few gnomes as groundsmen.

I went to a very interesting whole days lecture on the Hustiry if the Garden Gnome by Dr Twiggs Way.

Gnomes are not to be sneered at😬

History

The cataracts get worse😳

It's lucky my spelling is, too, because I understand what you mean.

I'd imagine gnomes are probably part of ancient folklaw.

I think i have read somewhere about them asking for the answer to a riddle, when they appear to surprised (terrified!) passers by.

Ah well, I’ll just carry on being naff, nose blind, environmentally unfriendly and all the other insults shared on here.

Why NonnaW? Do you have shares in the plastic grass company?

I'd never have it. Won't ever degrade, no insect life just smothered soil. Awful stuff!

If you really don't want anything to grow in your garden just put black plastic sheets down. It's a lot cheaper.