Let’s be honest, keeping a vibrant, green lawn requires significant time, energy, and money. You have to consistently mow, rake, fertilize, weed, and water. While the payoff is great, for some people, it’s just not worth the effort.
Fortunately, there is one alternative that has been “growing” in popularity over the last five years: synthetic turf. At Green Acres Landscape, we have been incorporating synthetic turf into our projects, most recently, in the New Product Showcase House which was featured on the HBA Tour of Homes.
Let’s discuss the reasons for choosing synthetic turf over real grass.
SAVE ON WATER
Cultivating a green, grassy lawn is not cheap, especially if your yard is large. A lot of water is required to keep the grass thriving, even more so if you live in a hot, dry environment. If you have around 750 square feet of grass, you will typically use over 20,000 gallons of water per year to keep it looking healthy.
Synthetic turf could drastically reduce this expense. It does require an occasional rinse-off depending on use, weather, and environment. If the synthetic turf is going to be used in a dog run (K-9 turf), it will need to be rinsed regularly. However, it still saves a considerable amount of water in comparison to a living lawn. Conceivably, it could pay for itself in a couple of years.
You could also consider installing an automated irrigation system if you don’t want to hassle with rinsing. This will help keep the turf cool on extra hot days.
MAINTENANCE
As you would expect, synthetic turf is significantly easier to maintain than regular grass; plus, it always stays green. You no longer have to mow, fertilize, or weed your yard. This reduces the amount of green waste going into landfills (grass clippings) and also reduces the number of harmful pesticides and fertilizers.
The only real maintenance required is leaf and debris removal, occasional rinsing, and the application of weed killer every once in a while. Other than that, your yard will take care of itself. And as an added bonus, cleaning up after your pets is much easier.
Synthetic turf is also great to incorporate into small areas and can create backyard putting greens or be used to in areas that don’t receive much sun. In short, there are many benefits to synthetic turf and should be a strong alternative for people who want a yard that will look and feel great, but with significantly less maintenance.