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.

Reading with intrigue

Slight aside but I did read the increase in paving for driveways etc. is increasing the issues with flooding as there is no where for water to drain. I wonder if this is also an issue with artificial lawns?

Plastic lawns are pollution in themselves.

Bloody good post 👏

But times that by all the people who have it and it's an absolute environmental disaster.

Everyone's environmental footprint is different. We don't have a car. If everyone followed our lead in that, we'd be in a much better place environmentally. But there are many reasons why the environmental disaster of mass car ownership continues, and I understand why other people make different choices to me.

Holly Willoughby has it? Why doesn't that surprise me?!

Yes we will definitely do raised beds for veg and flowers but really struggling for what to do with the rest and artificial grass seemed like it could maybe be a solution but maybe we should think again! We need to do something as the kids have got permanent scars from falling over on the tarmac and it’s just generally not a great space. What makes it more complicated is that the school was built at the top of the hill and the road sort of curves around and below it so to make the playground levelish they built it up with 15 feet of rubble before laying the tarmac and it’s all held in with large retaining walls so even if you break bits up there’s nothing decent underneath!

The link doesn’t work.

Sorry my previous post was a reply to this

But you're not getting grass that is usable, you're getting plastic to carpet your garden.

We cannot grow grass in our little suburban shaded garden. Tried for ten years, costing a fortune, but thanks to our neighbour's lleylandii and trees the permanent shade and bog make it impossible.

Finally laid some lovely artificial lawn in a small patch last year and my kids can now play outside all the time and they do. Changed our lives. So yes YABU and very narrow minded and judgy.

But paving isn't any better from that pov, yet I don't see it getting the same kind of ire on here.

@TheKeatingFive Paving is better for wildlife than fake grass, for the simple reason that it doesn’t shed countless pieces of microplastic into the environment.

The world is drowning in plastic. Why would any sane person do this??

Imagine the static shocks you might get from the revolting stuff.

DP's parents moved into a house with a beautful big garden about two years ago and immediately had all the lawn replaced with a plastic one. The garden now looks just weird and has this really strange, dead atmosphere about it when you go out there. It's really noticeable that no birds ever visit the garden. But MIL loves it because she hates 'creatures' in her garden. Cry.

We briefly used those plastic grass wee patch things when toilet training our puppy. The instructions were to wash in washing machine with anti pee enzyme wash in a mesh bag to keep clean. Even with this it stunk to high heaven so I’m unsure how an installed lawn that you presumably can’t put in the washing machine on a warm cycle, wouldn’t stink badly after a while!

Also agree that looks very tacky. I think nice pavers are so lovely, don’t know why people don’t just have pavers for a patio and some border plants? Is the cost differential including up keeping faff really so far on the side of the faux grass?

But you are talking about two different subjects, which are linked but they are very different impacts. Not using a car to tackle climate change is different than destroying bio-diversity.

Take birds for instance There are over 600 million fewer birds in Europe than there were 40 years ago, with House sparrow populations declining by half. Mainly due to habitat loss and man made actions.

Plastic lawns remove worms, burrowing insects and bees from the birds diet, they cannot forage for young, they have ZERO resource for wildlife. You are instantly depriving nature of part of the intrinsic web of life.

Even with paves areas, you still have burrowing insects and ants, etc..

Plastic lawns not only have a huge carbon footprint which is a long term affect, but they have a huge instant affect in biodiversity right now and that's is and immediate problem. We are currently experiencing the planets 6 mass extinction caused by man, since the dawn of human civilization, 83% of wild mammals, 80% of marine mammals, 50% of plants and 15% of fish have vanished.

Many species of animals, need connectivity to travel to breeding sites and to feed ect. Take a Great crested new for example, it spends 85% of its life on land and only uses ponds to breed. They can transvers natural grass as it contains moisture and shade, plastic lawns contain chemicals that are absorbed by their skin and heat us massively in warm weather making them a death trap.

This is not just about carbon there is a bigger picture.

Paving/gravel/bark etc are, at least, natural materials - not manufactured plastic.

For all those that say “now my kids can play in the garden”. That’s great for now, but what will the impact be on the environment once all those kids are adults?

Would be interested to see some photos from those who say they look great. The few I’ve seen don’t look good!

My two lawns have a lot of moss/clover - they’re never going to win a prize for looking great. Rather that than plastic.

@Steamedhams i think pavers would be a better idea, I could never get the pee smell out of our toilet training faux grass patches despite literally putting them in the washing machine with the pee enzyme special fake grass wash. I don’t believe PP who say theirs doesn’t smell. Pavers you can properly wash and they won’t absorb the smell.

This is where I say the thing that people will hate here….but house cats shouldn’t roam loose.

But you are talking about two different subjects, which are linked but they are very different impacts.

Yes I am. In the context of people's multiple and complex choices.

There's such a tendency in this debate to focus in on one thing, that aligns with your individual priorities and go all guns blazing judgemental on that. But everyone makes a series of choices, some better some worse. One in isolation isn't very indicative or helpful to leap on.

Where I live, it's common to have no car and quite a few people on my road have fake grass. There are lots of reasons for that, many of them already outlined on this thread. The gardens are tiny. By the by, we also have allotments and wasteland that's been allowed to go wild.

Is that really worthy of more judgement than people patting themselves on their backs for large lawns in the context of driving huge 4x4s and a much more consumerist lifestyle? It's better to look at things holistically.

Furries we also have a lot of moss and clover, I like it - the clover is spreading and adds greeness and the moss is also good, except in winter when it looks dry and sparse. We have a shade, east facing garden and clay soil but lots of nice flowers - daisies, violets, forget-me-knots, etc. I just try to discourage the dandelions and save the nice flowers when mowing.

Really interested in this as I am not ignorant to the environment. I drive a small car. After 3 years I have less than 8000 miles on the clock. I dont buy into fashion or diamonds or house improvements every few months. I have had 1 foreign holiday in 5 years. I do however have fake grass and a front extended drive as I am unable to manage the maintenance due to health issues and am unable to afford the ongoing financial costs of third party maintenance. My garden drains better now due to previous clay soil and neighbour extensions that caused water drainage issues in the past. I have also created insect attractive planted areas in the borders and planters. I wonder how many people who hate this feature drive huge gas guzzling cars or electric cars (insisting they are planet friendly- they aren't!), whilst travelling all over, pandering to the latest fashion or materialistic need. Oh I bet a lot have those log burning stoves as the new feature in their homes too. I'm not perfect but I reckon I'm still not damaging the environment as much as most of the people who are fixated on this one issue on here.

Then OP there are lots of things that should be banned that you probably own too
We have some astro that we use for dogs toilet area as its insTalled properly we wash and hose it down which we can't do with normal grass
We also have another small area which is tiny and no grass grows there it drains fine as again fitted well and our patio is worse for drainage
We also have a lot of plants in pots and also too one side of the small amount of astro which also soak up water and give the nature food
If i had a big garden would have grass but in my small postage garden this works just fine

@Magnumpi2 I'm interested in when they are going to make all those that have fallen for the log burner nonesense have to get them removed. I totally agree about electric cars. They use so many rare minerals/metals to make them as do mobile phones and solar panels. We've got hydrogen experimentation going on in Wales and there was a pilot project running hydrogen cars going on a couple of years ago. Actually should go and check it out but the hydrogen they were using came from the air and the only by product was water. Win win!