By: Mitch | Last updated November 6, 2022 
Humans take great pride in their own territory in a unique way. There are many other territorial animals out there, but none are territorial like us. Besides showing that territory is ours, we have the urge to change the territory in many ways. This means changing it to be more functional, but there is one other important factor, aesthetics. We love to make our homes aesthetically pleasing, even though that has no other functional purpose.
This is how lawns were invented, they represent our need to have aesthetic scenery in front of us. Long is the history of lawns, it spans back centuries and it is still evolving. Now, there is a whole new dimension of lawns, artificial turf. It sounds scary at first, everything with words artificial has a bad tone to it, but it is not scary at all. In order to get a better glimpse of it, let’s compare it with real grass and see which one is better.
Everyone who has a lawn knows what that means, an endless cycle of mowing it. One of the many joys of artificial turf is that there is practically zero maintenance. Artificial turf does not grow, it stays the same ideal length since the first day you bought it. That means a lot of saved time on mowing and a lot of money saved on a lawn mower. Fuel is getting expensive and so is charging the mower with power from your home.
Everyone also knows that mowing is very loud and you need to deal with all of the cut grass. It is an endless cycle that is stopped with artificial turf. Some people take great pride in taking care of their real grass, and that is perfectly ok. Some people like this cycle of mowing because it helps them deal with other things, which is great. But, if you do not like it, you do not need to feel ashamed, it is perfectly normal to switch to artificial turf.
Drainage is an important factor that many people forget, especially ones that do not live in rainy regions. Artificial turf has an extremely porous bed beneath the grass. This means that the water will flow directly under it where it will drain into the soil beneath. This means that the soil will remain healthy underneath the artificial turf. It will stay stable over the years, meaning the soil will not have negative effects on your home.
The faster the drainage the lesser the chances of flooding your home. Even if the water levels are not that high, the excess water can still get to your home and cause problems over time. More water means more moisture which results in mold and rotten structures. This can cause serious problems in the long term for your home, and more damage to your neighbors. This is usually not the problem in areas that do not experience rain, but for other regions, it is important.
When you think of grass, what is truly important to you? What makes grass, well, grass? It is not hard to differentiate real grass from artificial turf, on a scientific basis. However, if you were to look at two samples of grass and guess only by looks, you would be surprised. Artificial turf has evolved quite a lot over the last decades.
If you care about real grass for the sentiment, that is perfectly fine, go for it. If you only care about the looks and the texture of grass, there is no difference there. In fact, your grass will always be the same, you will no longer need to worry about keeping it healthy. Again, everyone with a lawn knows that keeping it healthy is not an easy job, nor is it a cheap task. And let’s not get started with other critters that can live in grass and be a nuisance to you and your pets.
Replacing real grass with artificial sounds like a very bad thing for the environment at first. However, it is not that black and white, especially when you compare it to pure lawns. Real grass is carbon-negative, that is true, but it is not that effective at its core. There is not a lot of life living in the grass, and you need to keep it healthy by watering it and fertilizing it.
This means that you waste a lot of precious water and you need to use industrial fertilizers to keep it, which is not that environmentally friendly. With artificial turf, you are not wasting any water and fertilizers to keep it healthy, it is just there. It is perfectly healthy for us and our pets and you can still choose where to put it. You can cover most of the area and keep the rest for growing trees or anything else that you want to grow in your yard.
Both artificial turf and real grass have their pros and cons, it is not a one-sided battle. It is important to look at all the parameters objectively before calling something out. The aforementioned points serve to open up a new perspective when thinking about both artificial turf and real grass.
There is a reason why people are switching to artificial turf, and it is important not to make blind decisions. By keeping your eyes open and your mind sharp, you will be able to make meaningful decisions. It is important to stay sharp for everything, even something that does not seem important at a first glance.
