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.

I’m so tired of poor people being held to higher ecological standards. Especially when their overall annual consumption and carbon footprint tends to be lower than the holier-than-thou people criticising them.

I don't understand why you think this is a poor person thing? I'm a poor person, it's cheaper for me to keep my patch of grass as it is than it is to change it to plastic. Why would poor people be wasting their money putting down plastic grass?

Oops - that wasn’t supposed to be bold. ‘Internalised snobbery’ was meant to have an asterisk next to it relating to the note underneath!

I don't see it as a money thing, just a shit taste thing.

'Taste' is determined by established elites. It's used as a tool to ensure those lower than them, particularly those with 'pretensions' don't get above themselves. It's inextricably linked with money, though it's about how established you are rather than how much you have.

Well quite, as per my previous post. I don’t have much money and I’m certainly not wasting the little I have on plastic grass.

We have a big back garden which is completely natural and we have all sorts of wildlife as we back onto the woods.

However,

I have a small bit of artificial lawn on my front with natural flower pots on to break the concrete drive up and add some greenery.

I actually don't care what anyone thinks.

Do you see garden rooms, kitchen extensions, houses with more bedrooms than occupants and double garages as ‘shit taste’?

I might if they were made of plastic.

I don't see why people get so bothered about it, not your garden, not your problem. X

You would be the ‘worthy poor’, aspiring to middle-class ideals

It is aspiration to non-middle class goals that marks the ‘unworthy poor’ - I.e. chavs.

There is not point in trying to have a nuance debate with some one who does not even understand the basic scientific understandings of mosaic habitats, connectivity and bioaccumulation. Lets face it you are upset as you see it as a class thing as seen by many of your previous posts, as I said when you can offer me a more intelligent debate I'll happily give you one, but calling science facts ridiculous, you are not worth my time.

It's not a popular opinion.

No it's not. You'll get much more traction on this thread giving out about chavs with no taste.

There are loads of 'shitty' environmental choices. I really wish we could get to a place where we all look at our overall impact and assess that accordingly.

but calling science facts ridiculous, you are not worth my time.

What 'science facts' have I called ridiculous. I'm saying what you do with a tiny patch of ground is just one thing, when there are hundreds of ways you can support biodiversity beyond this. Do you disagree?

You would be the ‘worthy poor’, aspiring to middle-class ideals

It is aspiration to non-middle class goals that marks the ‘unworthy poor’ - I.e. chavs.

Quite 😉

You would be the ‘worthy poor’, aspiring to middle-class ideals
It is aspiration to non-middle class goals that marks the ‘unworthy poor’ - I.e. chavs.

Is this a UK thing? I'm not in the UK and have no idea what you are talking about with your aspiring middle class and aspiration to non-middle class goals. I just have grass because it was there when we moved in and it's fine although more than slightly weedy and full of dandelions, I'm not trying to make any statement by having my weedy little lawn.

I might if they were made of plastic.

Its not just plastic that's problematic for the environment. These huge houses, taking up massive resources and requiring lots of energy to heat and run are a major, major issue.

It’s not a U.K. thing. I don’t recognise this weird confused stereotyping of money and class.

I just feel very strongly that those of us who are privileged enough to own some garden space,however small,have a duty to maintain and encourage wildlife in that space.

I'm really concerned about what is currently going on in suburbia,with more and more paving over of front gardens and the appearance of fake grass. Our local council is actually doing quite a lot to encourage biodiversity by leaving areas for wildflower planting,etc.,but residents are undoing so much of that by their actions.

The desire for additional parking space/getting rid of the lawnmower/creating hardstanding for massive outdoor furniture seems to be the overriding concern.The unfortunate thing is that no individual household will consider the cumulative effect of these actions when it's done by many.Of course people are free to do what they want on their own property,but should there be some limits placed on that,in the same way as limits are placed on building via planning permission?

Our next-door neighbour,who we get on with very well and who we've known for 30+ years actually half-jokingly called us fools for keeping a front lawn after he had his paved over.The couple who live to the back of us recently felled all the mature trees surrounding their large corner property and dug up their entire lawn to have it flagged over.Not only can we now stare into each other's houses from the upstairs back bedrooms,but several birds have had their nests removed and there seems to be less cushioning of traffic noise from the main approach road.They have placed pots of artificial flowers at strategic points on the flagstones.Everything suddenly looks so bare,so clinical.

If people continue to ditch the lawns and turn to concrete or fake grass we will be in trouble.To them,if it can all be cleaned with a couple of hours on a pressure washer on a Sunday afternoon it's all fine and job done.

Local councils may be making efforts with public open spaces,but I think they that they really need to up their efforts in educating and encouraging private residents because I feel that there is a crisis unfolding here.

Regardless of what they are made of, they’re are almost certainly more damaging to the environment than a fake lawn.

I have the same gut reactions as you. Believe me, I feel the same distaste. My first instinct is also to justify why it’s an acceptable reaction.

Plastic lawns are terrible for the environment, I’m not denying that, but the reaction to them is disproportional due to snobbery. We can have this debate without the class judgement (chavvy, common, poor taste, etc)

But that’s my point exactly.

Do you see garden rooms, kitchen extensions, houses with more bedrooms than occupants and double garages as ‘shit taste’? Because they all have worse eco credentials? Or have you been primed by internalised snobbery to only judge those things you see as class related?

I don’t mean that unkindly - we all have internalised snobbery

We're all snobbish about certain aesthetics, you're the one talking about class. (I also never once mentioned the environment.)

I just feel very strongly that those of us who are privileged enough to own some garden space,however small,have a duty to maintain and encourage wildlife in that space.

many people are doing that though, just not in the precise way you think they should

You asked specifically if they would be called ‘shit taste’. I replied.

The environmental impact of big houses is a different matter, but as I say, plastic grass is popular with the rich too. The bigger the garden, the larger swathe of plastic.

Fake grass makes me really sad.

Its almost as bad as the gravelled over gardens I have either side of me.

So bare and fency.

You asked specifically if they would be called ‘shit taste’. I replied.

I didn't ask that question

however to weigh in on it, we really should see these huge homes as shit taste, but we don't, because they represent the ideals of the taste makers.

'Taste' is determined by established elites. It's used as a tool to ensure those lower than them, particularly those with 'pretensions' don't get above themselves. It's inextricably linked with money, though it's about how established you are rather than how much you have.

That's an incredibly snobbish view of taste.

Sorry but why are you trying to deflect what I have asked numerous times? This thread is about artificial lawns. I can guarantee I'm highly more verse in ways to support bio diversity then you and I have never said any thing to the contrary, but this is pure deflection on your part, you still cannot grasp that no matter how small the area it forms part of a combined matrix and it also adds to the wider issue of bioaccumulation, fragmentation and CO2e emissions both through its production, use and life time.

You are actually coming across as like one of those people who are arrested and start complain to the police why are you wasting my time on me and not arresting murderers. Its all deflection from you and please answer my questions?

While I wouldn't choose to have artificial grass myself (I'm lucky enough to be in good health and can mow and maintain the lawn), I don't see how name calling achieves anything.

I think it's wrong to assume that people who choose them don't care about the environment. There are lots of reasons (many cited on this thread) why people have them. When I see huge diesel guzzling cars driving past, I don't automatically think 'selfish bastard'. I'm lucky not to need one. Some people need them because they have large families and live in inaccessible areas. That is certainly the case where I am - edge of the countryside, terrible to non existent bus service, depending on which backroad you live on. Horses for courses and all that.

This petition is about residential dwellings. What about all the other uses? Should they continue to be allowed? Should all the sports venues, for example, not just have grass pitches? Oh no, hold on ... money. Missed games due to muddy pitches. And all that expensive maintenance. Money talks. Just pick on ordinary people who may have a personal reason for not having a grass lawn (disability, advancing age, lack of money to pay for lawn services they can't carry out themselves etc).