Artificial Turf
Artificial Grass seems like the eco-friendly thing to do. I’m not so sure
The lists of both pros and cons of installing artificial grass are very long. It is important that you understand all of it to make the best decision. You will of course need to consider environmental benefits AND drawbacks, but also your personal landscape care needs, the size of your lawn, as well as expense. And we cannot overlook that all artificial grass is not produced the same. Quality, impact on the environment from manufacturing, as well as the durable life of the product need to be carefully considered and compared to maintaining real grass.
It would be way too easy to focus on the benefits of artificial turf, so first lets look at all the disadvantages.
Cons of Artificial Turf
It is petroleum based plastic! And will smother biodiversity and not support wildlife.
If you decide to go back to real grass, the soil life may be too dead to support real grass.
Artificial turf is not oxygen producing like real grass is.
Production methods of artificial turf cause pollution and waste.
Weeds can grow through the artificial turf. A weed fabric as well as applying weed killer will help to reduce weeds.
Quality turf that looks great and is durable can be quite expensive. A top quality installation is important and labor intensive. Cost can be well over 30 times the expense of installing sod.
It can be hot. It holds a lot more heat than natural grass. You may not be comfortable walking or sitting on it. It is not unusual for artificial grass to get as much as 30 degrees warmer than the air temperature. Watering it, which is one thing we hope to eliminate with artificial grass, can temporarily cool it down.
As a play surface artificial grass can cause rug burn.
Infill materials, often crumb rubber, needs to be replaced every few years.
You may have to clean up spills and messes on your artificial grass rather than just hose a mess down. Some messes will get smelly or rotten if left and your turf should regularly be sanitized to remove bacteria. Routine cleaning with a detergent and a brush will keep it clean.
Artificial grass may melt too close to fire pits or if a hot charcoal escapes the bbq or firepit.
Lifespan is generally about 7 to 15 years and then will need to be replaced. Quality improvements in the production process may expand the life up to 25 years.
Degraded artificial turf is an enormous sheet of plastic going to the landfill. Newer techniques allow for some turfs to be recycled.
Some artificial turf, especially of low quality, will contain toxins that release into the soil as the turf degrades. There are still many questions about toxicity even of the high quality turfs.
In some circumstances it will absolutely look “fake”. As the snow is melting, in extreme heat, in drought, artificial grass will always look falsely lush and green.
Pros of Artificial Turf
Artificial grass really does look great, it’s come a long way over the years. Even under the most extreme conditions a top quality turf will always look lush and green (Pro? Con?)
The best artificial turf is fade and stain resistant and won’t fray along edges.
No watering, unless the turf gets too hot to walk on.
No fertilizing.
No mowing and trimming.
It will “grow” everywhere, even dense shade.
If you have grass allergies, artificial turn of course does not produce grass pollen.
Depending on your level of standards for real grass, a durable artificial turf may be more economical in the long run.
A top of the line artificial turf and installation can reduce, but probably not eliminate, the common problems of heat build up, toxic runoff from infill materials, and rug burn issues in play areas.
There may be situations that make sense to consider installing artificial grass. Due to the impact on your soil and biodiversity you might consider installing it only in specific small areas. Perhaps on a hill that is too steep to even maintain plants let alone grow and maintain grass. Perhaps in small patches of a hardscaped landscape. And of course some areas of the country are just too hot and dry to support lawns. Artificial turf would be too hot to walk on, but small expanses with stone paths could be a lovely alternative to gravel. And with so much extreme weather I concede it can be difficult to maintain a reasonable grass lawn. I will opt for other garden plants when it becomes to difficult.