Everyone who has a garden, yard, or other outdoor space wants it to be a place for family time, relaxing, and outdoor dining. There are so many different ways you can use a yard space, whether for your kids’ trampolines or slides or even a nice barbeque area. The possibilities are quite literally endless!
The only issue with yards is there is a lot of maintenance involved, especially if you have a great amount of space to play with. For this reason, amongst others, many people have decided to make the strategic switch to artificial turf for some or all of their lawns. In this article, we’ll discuss fake lawns, their benefits, drawbacks, and how you can make a fake turf look just as great as a real one – should you choose to. So, if you’re considering some garden maintenance or redesign, look no further. Read on to find out everything you need to know…
What is Fake Grass
Artificial turf, often referred to as fake grass or synthetic lawn, is essentially a copycat lawn made from polyester or other materials. Many people have synthetic turf installed for residential homes, while many businesses and public spaces also opt for low-maintenance lawns. Most often the turf-like aspect of the product will be produced with a blend of nylon, polypropylene, or polyethylene. These materials can be shaped, cut, and softened to look and feel like real grass as much as possible.
These materials are stitched or glued into a backing material. It is this backing that both hold the turf in place and also gives it that cushioned feel, making it as close to real grass as possible. In the past, people worried that artificial lawns were never going to be as comfortable or believable as a real turf lawn, however, the modern product has gotten so good that it’s almost impossible to tell the difference!
Benefits vs Real Lawn
There are so many benefits of artificial lawns. First and foremost, the level of maintenance on an artificial lawn is going to be a lot lower. In the summer months, you won’t need to spend hours watering the grass and trimming it every weekend. There will be no need for expensive irrigation systems or hours spent wondering if the grass is going to get scorched by the heat.
Often, despite your best efforts, patches of grass die. Then you are left with the task of reseeding your lawn, sprinkling seeds to try and get an even match. Does it ever work? Rarely! So, people end up with patchy, uneven lawns that they are ashamed of.
You’ll save money long-term too! Plastic lawns never die. They are durable at the same time as being soft. They will not scorch or die in the sun. So, while artificial grass may cost more than buying rolls of turf in the initial stages, over the following years you will certainly spend less on maintenance, care, or repair of turf.
Why Not Use Real Grass?
Some people worry that artificial turf won’t look good. As mentioned, the products on the market these days are so great that some people won’t even notice that you have a faux lawn. However, despite their best efforts, some people still prefer to keep their lawns natural. Natural grass creates a bit more work in the way of maintenance, but it provides that fresh grass smell and real living turf to relax on.
You could, of course, use a mixture of both. Say you have a small garden area that you don’t have time to tend to very often. You could use fake turf to keep this area neat and tidy, whilst surrounding the artificial lawn with planters of easy maintenance plants, bushes, flowers, and more. This can strategically hide the fact you are using fake grass in the first place.
Looking After Fake Grass
While you don’t have to water your fake grass to keep it alive, it does look best when it is clean. Dust and dirt travel on shoes or through the air, settling in the microfibres of the turf. Rain is the easiest and cheapest cleaner of artificial turf, however, if you live in an area without much rainfall, giving it a quick blast with the hose can bring it back to life.
It’s also worth noting that although the grass may be fake, any organic matter that finds its way onto the turf – like fallen leaves or plants – will still rot. The only issue is, it has nowhere to go and will just rot on the surface! So, keep the area tidy and your grass will look great!
The best thing about all this is that you don’t have to do any of these tasks regularly! Artificial turf is so easy to look after that you’ll probably wonder why you hadn’t got some installed sooner.
