Sometimes improvements on the way that we did things in the past offer benefits that go beyond simply saving money, or being better for the environment. Sometimes we can do both with the same improvements, both doing good for our community as well as making life easier on us. This is the case with synthetic grass, and installations that can happen if you choose to modernize your home in Orange County. Artificial grass is a synthetic plastic product that consists of plastic blades of grass that are colored and shaped to look like the grass which is popular in your area. It is attached to a water permeable backing material and is installed into your yard by staking it securely to the ground over a weed barrier and a compacted filler material for added drainage benefits and cushioning. The types of artificial turf that can be chosen from vary widely depending on the look and feel you are going for. It can range from short and manicured to resembling a putting green, to long and lush as if your lawn were thick and unaffected by heat. There are also color differences that you can choose based upon your preference. Artificial turf will require no future landscaping after it has been installed, and will ultimately need only an occasional blowing off of debris that might have collected, or potentially hosing off if dirt has accumulated on top.
The ease of use of artificial turf over real grass is obvious because it is not a living plant and it will require no trimming, but how can it benefit the community you live in? The answer comes in the form of water conservation and the drought conditions that southern California has been facing for several years. Predictions for the amount of hot days that will happen in the sumemrtimes vs the amount of rain that will supply the reserves has been shrinking, essentially leading to the prediction that the summers will continue to get hotter and there will be less rainfall to supply our drinking water. This is the classic drought situation, where steps must be taken on a community-wide level in order to conserve the water that we have on hand in order to assure that there is enough for all humans and animals to drink. We must prioritize humans and animals over decorative landscaping plants, and it has been proven that one of the biggest wastes of water in southern California is landscaping. Watering grass in this area in order to keep it alive will use more than 50 gallons of water per square foot every year, all of which is not able to be reclaimed because it simply is absorbed by the ground. This water could be saved in order to assure drinking water for people, so community wide conservation plans will generally include actions like removing existing grass in favor of water smart ground coverings like artificial turf. Synthetic grass saves water while providing all the benefits of real grass, so switch today.
