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.

It should just be flattened earth under it, with a weed proof lining, and should be easy to take up (easiest would be to slice into sections with a Stanley knife). If it's in decent condition it would be worth advertising on freecycle, someone might take it off your hands and come and remove it.

I too get really pissed off with people attacking artificial grass. It may not be your choice. I'm not vegan either, but I care, recycle, fly little, have a hybrid.

In our garden we have a large patio, a number of flowerbeds and a small smallish square area of what used to be lawn that we invested a lot of money three times to try and get it to grow and had grass relaid twice but it just wouldn't grow because the soil is so poor and in the end we put down plastic grass and it's been an absolute lifesaver and I've got loads of bushes and roses and everything and all the flower beds and pots and I'm happy with my choice and I'm fed up of people attackin. yeah I know it's not the greenest option, but glasshouses .... throw stones, not everyone is as an environmentally friendly as the next person. just wish people would stop criticising.

If OP wants to remove hers and put grass? Great. Crack on. What's the issue?

Pretty much exactly where i have come from over the last 20yrs. 3 or 4 new lawns. Re seeding. Scarifying. Mowing. Chemicals etc etc etc. Always ended up with a mudbath in the end. Funnily enough i have more hedgehogs and birds in my gardens since going artificial grass. 1 single outlay on artificial lawn and 15yrs without issue. Year round garden and spend the money on making sure the rest of the garden is sustainable instead.

I get the feeling if you described your garden as a square patio surrounded by flower beds you would get a more positive response.

I do Tessa. Doesn't change sanctimonious anti plastic grass condemnation.

@Tessasanderson, that sounds like a drainage problem. Grass will grow on fairly poor soil without chemicals. I had a bark covered are and I cleared it and reseeded it. Grass doesn't need to be perfect the wildlife in it is probably happy.

Sanctimonious anti plastic grass condemnation is better than sententious plastic grass justification

I think the sanctimonious and sententious comments are all coming from the ‘anti’ side. God forbid the ‘open to the idea’ side should challenge them.

Not sure I quite agree, both sides are at it, the “for side” giving it well if you eat red meat you can shut it 😂

Eating red meat isn't particularly relevant. Eating locally reared red meat occasionally isn't the same as covering your lawn in plastic.

Livestock grazing the countryside has a part to play in looking after our country and planet.

There are ways of having an attractive low-maintenance garden without covering it in plastic probably shipped from China or somewhere

😂

I do see what you mean. I was trying to make the point that none of us is perfect but some of the anti-artificial lawn crew seem to think having a grassy patch gives them carte blanche to pontificate and be un-eco in as many other ways as they like because it’s not apples for apples. That’s being deliberately obtuse. As if it’s ok to drink almond milk and eat South American avocados as long as you have a lawn. Bizarre. None of us has a non-existent footprint and the hypocrisy- because that’s what it is from the more evangelical- and refusal to hear they’re not perfect themselves, is astounding.

Equally, having plastic grass and recycling is sickening hypocrisy, going by that logic.

i recycle as much as i can, composting newspapers etc
Grow my own veg. Walk everywhere unless it is too far. Reuse single use plastic.
Make do and mend. Batch cook. Buy refurbished or second hand.

Even the pre-homed DCat's leftovers get recycled - I put them out so that a passing hedgehog can have it (although I think NDNCat eats it)

No hypocrisy here.

Artificial grass is not environmentally friendly

It would be if the people with plastic grass were eco-criticising someone with a grass lawn for having a big car.

What does your heating and hot water run on @KirstenBlest ?

im not actually interested, but the point is I’m not the one throwing stones when I’m not perfect myself.

I haven't had the heating on for months. The immersion heater was last on when a plumber came to fix the heating about 10 yrs ago and he said there was nothing wrong with the heating and switched the immersion on.. Got a proper plumber out - the thermostat has gone. It was weird having hot water.

The gardening board is a really supportive, friendly patch of MN, but when a thread title about artificial grass or dropping a rotten tree or thrifting weaker seedlings or using plastic labels hits ‘trending’ then all the eco warriors come bounding in to tell us we’re all wrong and rare up looking for a fight.

By all means carry on, but if I roll my eyes much more they’re likely to fall out, so you’ll have to make do without my eco terrorist company for the remains of this massively derailed thread.

had not has. Heating goes on only when it is necessary to avoid frozen pipes.
I have an electric shower, which is set to tepid. I only shower if I can no longer stand the smell

They are though - one of the first posts does exactly that.

Plastic grass is crap for the environment, that's all people are saying. Hardly a contentious view, it is pretty obvious that plastic is negative in comparison to plants.

It isn't sanctimonious, IMO, to say something is shit for the environment. Sanctimonious means hypocritically pious. I don't consider myself hypocritically pious with regards to grass - I think plastic grass is environmentally shit and so I wouldn't have it.

This type of whataboutery is such bollocks, it doesn't change the fact plastic grass is environmentally negative.

I’m surprised at the whataboutery as well, no one has actually tried to defend it but just keeping saying well you eat meat and use water so you can’t say anything about my plastic grass as you’re just as bad.

yes most things we do have an environmental impact but this does not in any way mean people who drive cars or use hot water are not permitted to comment when they see something really bad,

it’s like watching someone get violently assaulted, and the perpetrator saying well you are just as bad mate, you were speeding and went at 32 in a 30, so you’re a hypocrite if you take issue with me breaking the law as you did it too.

When people resort to whataboutery it is because they know they haven't a leg to stand on with regards the actual subject at hand, IMO.

I do chuckle to myself when I see a fake lawn in the middle of winter, all bright green when everything around it in nature is starting to fade. It’s a bit like a bright orange fake tan.
but I understand the desire for low maintenance if you don’t like gardening. My friend had some which got waterlogged due to heavy rain and it absolutely stank.

Hi OP. To answer your question re turf or seed, the turf is more expensive but you get a lawn quicker. The seed is much cheaper obviously. Either of these options will need watering regularly as we come into Summer though goodness knows what happened to our April rains this year. You can lay turf on top of the hardcore. I've done it myself. We then had two very dry summers and it really struggled as it dried out much more than the adjacent areas. It's looking ok so far this year.