Artificial garden lawns - what a weird world

[Figmentofmyimagination]

Another installed on our street. I just don’t understand it. Why would anyone do this?

There is a petition to ban their sale for installation in residential dwellings if you want to sign it:

It’s only got 5,900 signatures so far, which seems a pretty low number, given how much of a no brainer this is, imo. Maybe that’s just me.

petition deleted by MNHQ as we don't allow them, we're afraid.

Just use bark there.

They’re horrible. I also don’t like front gardens that have been turned into forecourts without so much as a potted plant anywhere.

No it isn't lazy - a myriad of reasons they may not be able to mow lawn any more
No space for a lawnmower is actually a thing - pocket-sized cardens have very little room for a place to put a mower
Paying people to mow a lawn is not necessarilt affordable
You come across as an entitled snob, and I am sure that your eco-credentials are perfect, as is your life, leaving no room for anyone to criticise your choices (or acts of necessity).

Saw this the other day...

twitter.com/thanettrees/status/1522506280698626048

The Steford Wives are out in force today
We must have a front lawn, with flowers, which either the Oh or gardener will mow on a Sunday after our roast lunch..
And then we can laugh at the riff-raff who want an articficial lawn or god forbid, have turned their front lawn into a parking space or haven't had the decency to place a potted plant in view...

Noooo @Ylvamoon, make carpet compulsory in upstairs flats, the thicker the better!

Theignorants are out in force on this post - must be a full moon or something. I hope that your parents have many more years of happiness in their garden.
Just ignore the DM/Torygraph readers - they probably think that this is a result of brexit or something

Please let us know where you live. I would happily pay for everyone on your street to have an artificial lawn front and back

Oh I've got potted plants, all dead though so I suppose that's a problem!

I am very lucky to have almost 1/2 an acre of garden which has gone almost wild but I also have a 2x2m2 patch of artificial grass in the dog run area. It was originally normal grass which quickly turned into the most filthy swamp imaginable. I have 3 dogs and it was soul destroying mopping 5x a day. We couldn’t afford a patio.

I was surprised at how good it is actually, I wouldn’t do it to my main gardens but if I had a tiny postage stamp I would consider it.

We are considering 5m x 3m section of artificial grass in our garden. Our 6 year old daughter has severe developmental disabilities and has a habit of eating grass/leaves etc. An area of artificial turf would be great for her to be able to play without the worry of her ingesting something. Plus it will enable all weather play.

This

Perhaps next we should cut down all the trees and replace those with plastic ones too so that the awful blossom and leaves don't shed everywhere into people's gardens. So inconvenient.

twitter.com/SwindonNCent/status/1521736320988725250?t=gyD0k_2iLltNC17g495qzQ&s=19

Spend the money you are wasting on this ecological disaster on a shed?

I agree with the commentary upthread that a lot of the criticism is coming from a place of blind privilege. We have such a tiny garden, a shed would eat into it significantly. It may seem an obvious solution to those with lovely rolling lawns, but many people are not in this position.

Wow, so much hatred for them!

not to my taste but completely appreciate why elderly or disabled neighbours would rather look at something green than the hitherto go to paving or gravel.

Perhaps next we should cut down all the trees and replace those with plastic ones too so that the awful blossom and leaves don't shed everywhere into people's gardens

No ones actually suggesting this, you know that, right?

Did you look at the tweet I linked? People are apparently complaining to a council that trees are shedding blossom / catkins onto their lovely plastic lawns. And I've seen more than one thread on MN complaining about leaves.

Just horrible plastic stuff, terrible for the environment, looks shit, lowers the value of the house and makes an ok house look like a child's nursery playground. I wouldn't even look at buying a house with the stuff.

People are apparently complaining to a council that trees are shedding blossom / catkins onto their lovely plastic lawns.

People will complain about literally anything. No one here is discussing such a thing.

They actually are:
twitter.com/thanettrees/status/1522506280698626048

No-one here is discussing holidays or cars or other environmental disasters either and yet you and others keep bringing them up...

Rather than arguing with those who believe there artificial lawns don't matter, I'm not going to argue with you.

I'm only going to ask you a question do you feel biodiversity is not important?

Humans have removed a majority of all living spaces and ecological niche`s, gardens make up one of the largest remaining habitats in the UK and every inch is a loss from this, this is not about rich or poor its about life.

Its not about all the species you observe its all the life you do not.

Why is biodiversity important - with Sir David Attenborough

No-one here is discussing holidays or cars or other environmental disasters either and yet you and others keep bringing them up

And I've explained why countless times. One persons environmental impact is far more complicated than whether or not they do one thing you don't like.

I'm only going to ask you a question do you feel biodiversity is not important?

Of course biodiversity is important. However what people decide to do with postage stamp gardens, which may not support growing good grass to begin with is of negligible impact.

As many have said on here, you can have fake grass but also beds supporting lots of plant life, plants in pots, other parts of your garden given over to wild plants. Or, as in my area, specific wasteland let run with wild flowers.

It's already happened...

creativelandscapingworks.com/product/rainbow-grass/