For Californians, vast expanses of water-guzzling lawn are becoming a thing of the past. Living grass is no longer sustainable – or even acceptable -- given our devastating drought conditions. But that doesn’t mean you can’t have a luxurious, green lawn. Synthetic grass is rapidly growing in popularity, and for many good reasons.
When you make the decision to abandon your “old fashioned” lawn in favor of synthetic grass, your yard will not only become more useful, you’ll want to use it more. How does artificial turf provide so many benefits?
Sustainability and eco-friendliness.
You could replace your lawn with rocks and gravel or concrete, but hard surfaces absorb and reflect heat, making your home’s outdoor environment feel hotter and heating up the broader environment as well. Synthetic grass doesn’t do that, so you can retain the cooling properties of natural grass – with no wasted water and no chemicals to apply.
When you add a bird bath and hummingbird feeders, your feathery friends will enjoy your yard more this summer, too – and you’ll be able to enjoy them up close. Plant flowers that attract hummers and butterflies, too, in pots or beds next to your synthetic grass.
Money saved.
Since you won’t have to buy gas and oil for your mower, fertilizer, pesticides and all that costly water, you’ll have money to put toward something else. You could take a vacation, invest in your children’s college fund, get some stylish new patio furniture or a grill or build an entire outdoor kitchen, surrounded by your always-perfect synthetic grass lawn.
Expanded fun for the whole family.
It’s a given these days that kids spend way too much time indoors playing with electronic devices. Thanks to synthetic grass, you can conjure up captivating ways for your children and their friends to play outside. Maybe they’ll even let the adults join in.
With artificial turf, you have no worries about risks to your family from lawn care chemicals or allergies. Artificial grass itself is completely non-toxic, too. Think of all the things you could be doing this summer:
- Help your kids build a fort. It could be a teepee made of sticks and a sheet.
- Make a super-lightweight soccer goal from PVC pipe and plastic garden netting to turn your yard into a mini soccer pitch.
- Create a miniature golf course you can arrange in different ways, by constructing fun do-it-yourself “holes” using sections of plastic pipe or empty cans, cardboard-box structures or ramps that drop into cups.
- Play Frisbee with the dog or disc golf with your friends. (Make sure your targets aren’t breakable, though.)
- Fill some plastic bottles with water and arrange them on your synthetic grass to create a bowling “alley.” You can use any type of ball to knock them over.
- Step it up a notch by installing your very own bocce ball court or croquet court made of synthetic grass, then invite friends over for a tournament.
- Create a dog agility course, or an obstacle course for the kids.
- Hold a back yard camp out – minus the damp, buggy grass.
- Host a neighborhood treasure hunt.
- Have a water balloon fight. Or make water balloon piñatas for your son’s birthday party.
- Get a trampoline.
- Set up a sprinkler to run through when it’s really hot. Water drains quickly through artificial turf, and it dries quickly, too.
Reclaimed personal time.
Instead of doing unsatisfying yard work, you can play or simply relax. Redesign your back yard, by creating separate seating and play areas, perhaps a cozy reading nook. Plant a veggie garden and eat the proceeds. Install a putting green, and watch your score drop. Flop out on your soft, natural feeling synthetic grass and spend some time watching the clouds. What shapes do you see in them?
Host a party – or lots of parties. After all, you’ll want to show off your smart new lawn.
