The Pros And Cons Of Artificial Grass
We all love the feel and smell of natural grass. A beautifully kept lawn will always be the pride of any gardener. There are situations, however, where artificial grass is a more sensible option. Below we will briefly discuss these situations where it’s better to use artificial than natural grass.
One such area, where one nowadays finds increasing use of synthetic grass, is on athletic and sports fields. The reason is that these areas have to be able to withstand heavy traffic. Ordinary grass quickly develops bald patches under heavy use and has to be constantly maintained. Synthetic grass is made of very strong artificial fibers which can withstand much more abuse than real grass and which will remain looking good for much longer periods of time.
Another reason so many sports fields and athletic courses nowadays prefer to make use of synthetic lawns is to help them save money on water. Especially during the hot summer months, sport clubs spend a small fortune on keeping their grass in a good condition. With synthetic grass there is of course no need for water.
A synthetic lawn is therefore also the perfect solution for somebody who owns a vacation property. If you have a real grass lawn at your vacation house, you will have to hire a person or a company to maintain the lawns for you throughout the year. With an artificial lawn, there is virtually no need for maintenance. If the blades ever become flat, you simply need to brush them with a hard bristled brush to get them to the upright position again.
Many people are under the impression that artificial grass is bad for the environment. This is not supported by scientific studies. A recent study, for example, reported that no proof could be found of any harmful gasses being emitted by synthetic lawns. The lawns also did not disturb the natural flow of water. No harmful pollutants were found in the storm water run-off from these type of lawns either.
Another complaint that used to be raised against synthetic grass is that it doesn’t have a natural feel and look to it. This might have been true a couple of years ago. As science developed better and more natural feeling materials to use in the manufacture of artificial grass, this complaint became less relevant. Soy is for example used to not only make the grass feel more natural, but also to give it a more natural color.
Taken over a ten year period, artificial grass is in many situations the better choice. It provides a low maintenance, hard wearing option in situations where ordinary grass would not be practicable. There is a once off capital outlay and after that virtually no additional costs are involved.
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