How to get rid of artificial grass

[jobnockey]

Hi all,
In process of buying a house at the moment which has a lovely sized and garden which I can't wait to get my hands on. HOWEVER, one area of it is covered with plastic grass. I passionately hate artificial grass and want to remove it immediately but feel like I need a plan before I start ripping it up on moving in day

Does anyone know what is going to be underneath it? Will I be able to seed the area, or should I try and splash out on turf? Should I wait until a specific time of the year to do this? It's a decent sized area , perhaps 4x5m.

Finally, what should I do with it? I feel conflicted about selling it (although the money would be useful) as I don't want to perpetuate the stuff, but on the other hand if someone is going to use it anyway, at least it saves it being produced and bought new again... Reusing is probably better than recycling right? Does it actually recycle, does anyone know? Would it have to go to a specialist place for recycling?

If anyone has dealt with a similar situation who can offer any words of wisdom that would be great.

No, you weren’t - you were checking how eco conscious that poser was to dismiss their point.

@Pumperthepumper ohhh right was I? You're wrong, but whatever makes you feel better

No, I’m not. You asked them a question.

Well done! Star for you! How does that prove you right?

This is getting a bit circular now.

@AllThingsServeTheBeam I did not read your other posts! by way of apology for my brusqueness as I do not wish to be dismissive of the impact of a disability and therefore the need for practicality, nevertheless it is true that plastic grass is a far worse option than many others that do not cause the mud issue.

I despair at how shit plastic grass is, it is awful environmentally.

It was here when we moved in. I'm not ripping an artificial lawn up that was only 3 years old. That I use. That's changed my life. Plus I don't have the funds.

Ooh I'd never heard of a clover lawn before but thinking it might suit an awkward patch we have that used to have bark and trampoline on and is kind of in its own section. Does anyone have one? It sounds lovely!

Camomile lawn is also lovely, it releases a smell when you walk on it

Artificial grass often used from second hand sport pitches by diary farmers to make a softer path along tracks from field to milking parlour, beats old carpets

You can also do chamomile lawns, and moss lawns, as well as clover lawns. There are so many natural beautiful alternatives to grass lawns, depending on the issue to be addressed, from shady spot, high foot fall, no mow, dogs etc,

I do find it very surprising people go for the expensive plastic pretend grass lawn when for less money they could have something so much more beautiful and environmentally beneficial.

Is this a good time to mention #NoMowMay?

www.plantlife.org.uk/uk/discover-wild-plants-nature/no-mow-may

Put an ad out, free to good home. Taker must roll up. They'll come and take all the bits to it and you can roll out some proper stuff on top.

I was also considering just making it a wildflower patch, chucking some seeds down there once it's stripped back and seeing how it goes and if we can get lots of bees and butterflies visiting. It's not an area that's walked on at all.

Lots of things to look at!

Put it on Freecycle. Someone will be very grateful for it.

@Tessasanderson
Drive cars, use electricity, use electric/petrol lawnmower, use chemicals etc etc.

Can drive but rarely do, cut grass occasionally with a manual lawnmower, use natural chemicals wherever possible.

What sort of lifestyle can justify a plastic-covered lawn. If you are next to a nature reserve you might be blocking the path of hedgehogs and other wildlife. Do you have plastic trees, shrubs and flowers too?

That's fine @AllThingsServeTheBeam , my point is not really about you specifically. All I am saying is the scientific fact is that plastic grass is absolutely shit for the environment. It is shit in and of itself, as in the unnecessary production of plastic, but also because it takes a piece of land space away from positive use by flora and fauna.

I have never said it isn't

I am going to be planting some wildflowers this weekend and will be not mowing (most of) the lawn in May.

Bee balm is also great, it grows really easily and spreads quickly, and the flowers last ages. I’m growing honesty just now too and it’s doing really well.

You can buy clover lawn seed in most garden centres / B&Q-type places now I think. Ours is accidental really, more a case of benign neglect and a love of wildflowers rather than design, but I love it.

Chamomile is gorgeous (and smells beautiful when you walk on it) but I think it's quite high-maintenance, clover is much easier.

There are so many alternatives to plastic lawns, there really is no excuse.

That’s good. We’ve made a start on No Mow May already as we had a great big patch of daisies and I couldn’t bear to cut them down. I mowed a path to the pond and to the shed and will let the rest go wild.

I just can’t understand why anyone would put down plastic ‘grass’ . Every afternoon we get blackbirds come down on the grass digging around for worms. Imagine them flying down into a garden covered in plastic and not being able to feed. It’s horrendous.

Any idea how damaging to the environment those rechargeable batteries in your robot lawn mower are? Lithium batteries…..recharging each time. Cost of manufacture. Cost of shipping from somewhere like Taiwan……. Yeah, real green to buy the latest gadget and think you are being green 😀

It’s still less damage than artificial grass.

Nope, all natural flowers etc.

why do I have to justify it. As I said earlier, I just answered the Op with a semi educated answer to the question. You people changed it into judgmental bollox. I am sure if we delve into anyone’s lifestyle we can claim compromises all over the place. How many have man made fibre carpets in households which will take similar times to degrade? You don’t make change by attacking. I discovered bee bombs last year and now have loads. Maybe I will discover a lawn covering that I prefer from those suggested elsewhere on here. But at no time will aggressively comment be anything other than a waste of energy