anyone have a lawn without grass?

[bluecow208]

I am coming close to admitting defeat. our relatively small shady wet back garden (yard) has been lovingly returfed and had drainage channels dug in but is still a patchy boggy minefield of cat turds!
i have this lovely idea of the kids playing on it but they are only allowed about 5 times a year after i've cleaned it! anyone have anything different? astroturf? paving even. i've even considered that foam stuff but really would like it to look a bit nice as there will be grown ups as well as swing ball and paddling pools!

What about some lawn chamomile?
Astroturf might skin your dc's knees and the cat would still poop on it anyway.
Or ferns? They would do well in a damp shaded garden.

bumping this as i have the same problem - am almost despairing to the stage of considering decking !

We have quite a big garden and recently changed the layout to reduce the amount of lawn. I set aside one area for the trampoline and swings and put astroturf there instead of grass because I was fed up of mowing around them and it looking a mess. The astroturf looks quite good and from a distance most people assume it is grass. I wouldn't automatically choose it instead of grass but if you are really having problems with your lawn then I think it could be a good option. Just make sure you get a type that is for children's play areas so that it doesn't burn their legs if they fall or anything.

there are several reason y u might be experiancing this prob. If there are a lot of trees overhanging you lawn this could contribute so hacking them bk a bit might work. most of your options depend on budget. If drainage is a problem then one idea is to take up the lawn turn the soil over as im guessing its a clay and so retains water, add a good layer of gravell and sand to help water drain away and then put a layer of semi permiable membraine down... if you put some soil ontop of this and relay the lawn on top of this. cammomile and mind your own business can be good substitues for a lawn but are purely ornimental and wouldn't enjoy being trampled on by children... cat poo there are certain plants you can put in your garden to detir cats or you can get little buzzer things that only they can hear. hope thats of some use. sorry about the spellings!

I think fake grass looks awful. So I would suggest either make the lawn work or some kind of paving/decking. Charlotte's suggestions sound pretty good.

we got rid of all our grass and had it paved. Worked well, the garden became usable 365 days a year. Ds could ride his bike or go kart,play ball etc etc without being in a mud bath then trapsing it in through the house.

do you have to clean astroturf?

We have astroturf and it's amazing. It stays beautifully clean and looks great all year round. It's only a small area (3 x 5m)but perfect for dc's to play on. The rest of the garden is paved.

We bought the grass here

so you don't have to wash it or anything? can you rake it? we've got loads of trees.

Best to use one of those sucker/blower things to get up any debris.

Having said that, I just brush it occasionally or pick up the leaves as it is such a small area.

Does it drain the water away ok or can it flood?