It’s 2022 – men can be women and women can be men. The sentence/title Black Lives Matter has become an international movement. Non-woke people are being canceled and Ireland has developed an obsession with replacing grass with plastic.

The world and what happens in it can be described in countless ways. One thing is for sure it will always be interesting.

As a young boy developing an interest in the world of gardens, I never would have thought that people would one day want to have the garden covered with artificial lawn – essentially a sheet of rubber and plastic made to look like a real live lawn.

I was shocked when I saw people looking at artificial lawns as a solution for a private, domestic garden. I struggled to fathom the idea that there was a market for it.

Before this the only places I saw artificial lawns were on astroturf football pitches, cheap crazy golf courses, and in the butcher’s window.

Now people are giving this material pride of place and making it a central feature of their manicured garden.

As a solution, it works. It’s like that famous Ronseal paint slogan – “It does exactly what it says on the tin”.

Real Lawn Vs Artificial Lawn

Is Artificial Lawn for You?

Some people may be still on the fence about it, so  I’m writing this article for you so that you can weigh up both real lawns and artificial lawns against each other and make a better-informed decision.

A real lawn is essentially an area, with mowed grass. Ideally, that’s what it is, however in reality it’s rarely the case. Let’s break it down and go through the pros and cons of each in a like-by-like comparison.

1. Maintenance – Real Lawn

 

People generally don’t realize that a fair bit of work goes into keeping a lawn, weed free and healthy. Generally, people think mowing the lawn is the answer to maintaining a lawn. However, mowing the lawn is the bare minimum.

I think it’s fair to say that most people with lawns are guilty of being ignorant of proper lawn maintenance.

This is why most people’s lawns are not just grass, or even mostly grass, most people’s lawns are infiltrated with many varieties of weeds and moss. No amount of mowing is going to deal with that.

Lawns don’t even stay level by themselves and they don’t keep a strong edge by themselves. They don’t even stay hydrated by themselves, leading to dead zones and a general yellowing of your lawn.

1. Maintenance – Artificial Lawn

 

If you can keep your floors inside your house clean, you shouldn’t have a problem keeping your artificial lawn clean.

Perhaps once a year you can brush in a couple of bags of kiln-dried sand into it, you give it a bit of a lift, but generally, if laid correctly, an artificial lawn is pretty much maintenance-free.

I did come across one client who had the “clever” idea of putting a fire pit on top of the lawn – the result was a melted circle on the lawn. The grass is made of plastic. Plastic melts. Don’t put fire near or on your artificial lawn.

2. Function – Real Lawn

 

Sitting on, lying (including making love) on, or playing on a real grass lawn is one of life’s pleasures. But do you know what isn’t one of life’s pleasures?

Grass stains, mud stains, and having to wash your clean clothes, just because you were participating in some “innocent” activity.

Do you know what else isn’t so much fun? When Bugs decide you’re very interesting and crawl all over you.

2. Function – Artificial Lawn

 

Straight away, in terms of comfort, an artificial lawn can in no way compete with a real lawn. It has not gotten to that level yet.

However, it’s always flat, never muddy, and will never ever leave a grass stain on your white denim jeans.

Whatever activity you have planned for your artificial lawn you can be sure, that it’s ready and waiting at all times.

3. Flexibility – Real Lawn

 

A real lawn is incredibly easy to work with, should you want to change the shape, plant a tree or other plants. You can make a tired lawn look amazing again and rejuvenate it, with the right care and maintenance.

You can even bring your real lawn to the next level and turn it into a wildflower meadow, or just let it grow and watch it fulfill its natural potential as it rewilds itself.

3. Flexibility – Artificial Lawn

 

An artificial lawn isn’t nearly as flexible. If you want to rework the shape or plant something within it, you have to cut through the following layers:

– Plastic grass
– Rubber matting
– Weed membrane (depending on who lays it)
– Paving grit / or fine hardcore
– Compacted hardcore

This becomes both a skilled and a messy job, one that you are not going to be so enthused about doing yourself.

If you do decide you change to something else in the future, you also have to think about the disposal of the lawn. Which is a big mound of builders’ materials, plastic, and rubber. That’s going to cost you.

You should also note, that while you can make a real lawn look better, an artificial lawn is going to look its best from day 1. They often come with a 10 to 15-year guarantee – plastic and rubber are hard-wearing and resistant to the elements of our weather.

There are other comparisons that I could make, but I feel the above three comparisons give you plenty of ammunition to make a more informed decision.

Whether you decide to go with a real lawn or an artificial lawn, make sure to contact SAS Landscapes for a site visit and quote today.

Contact SAS Landscapes today for a quote:

office@saslandscapes.ie
083 137 7834

Photo by Daniel Barnes on Unsplash