Cultivated Lawn Turf or Artificial Grass

May 30th, 2023

The choice between natural or artificial lawns is a frequently asked question for those starting on outdoor home improvements – especially in recent years with the technological improvements in the plastics used for artificial surfaces. Obviously, both have their advantages and disadvantages that we’ll look at in more detail in this blog post. You’ll not be surprised by our conclusion, but we will try to be as fair as possible in this comparison piece.

Pros of Turf:

Natural Appeal, turf gives you a beautiful, lush green appearance that blends into the surrounding borders and plants in a way that no other product does. It’s soft, smells amazing when cut and self-repairing if damaged.
Turf improves the natural environment around your home in multiple ways. It traps dust particles, absorbs carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and generates oxygen.
With the increasing frequency of heatwaves, the natural cooling effect of turf may appeal to you. Turf absorbs and dissipates heat. This can make your outdoor space much more comfortable, especially during extremely hot weather.
Turf creates a natural habitat for insects, birds and other wildlife. You’ll likely see lots of nature’s smaller creations visiting and enjoying your garden.
Cost-effective, turf per square meter is very cheap compared to hard surfaces or artificial grass.
Laying turf does not need a professional installer, the enthusiastic DIYer can easily lay their own lawn.

Disadvantages of Turf:

Water usage. You do not need to water your artificial lawn, however, to keep turf at its best during hot, dry weather watering is beneficial (however it does not need to be tap water and various solutions exist to capture rainwater for later use).
Mowing, obviously one of the biggest differences is that natural turf grows and needs to be mown frequently during the spring and summer months. Other maintenance items exist as well such as weeding and fertilising the lawn to help keep it at its best.
Seasonal variation. Turf is a living surface, and its appearance can vary through the year (for example in drought conditions it can yellow).

Pros of Artificial Lawns:

Low maintenance, in comparison with natural turf the ongoing jobs list is smaller, no need to water, mow, weed or feed your plastic grass.
Durability, artificial turf is extremely durable and will survive in very high footfall areas where natural turf might be destroyed.
Allergy free, ideal for those allergic to grass pollen.
In areas that experience frequent hose pipe bans artificial grass is ideal because it does not need any water at all.

Disadvantages of Artificial Lawns:

Although greatly improved in recent years, artificial lawns look, well, artificial. If you prefer the look and feel of natural grass between your toes this isn’t for you.
Heat, this is perhaps the biggest drawback. Artificial lawns get extremely hot in sunlight. You might be comfortable sitting on natural grass and unable to sit on your artificial lawn at the same time of day.
While artificial grass eliminates the need for pesticides and herbicides it still damages the environment. It is made from non-renewable resources and can be tricky to dispose of at the end of its life contributing to the issues of waste going to landfill.

Choosing between natural lawn turf and artificial grass depends on various factors such as, budget, personal preference, environmental concerns, and maintenance capabilities. Consider the pros and cons outlined above and weight them against what you are trying to achieve with your project. If you decide to go with the (correct) choice of natural turf then please get in touch with us and we will help you get the perfect turf for your project.