The 2018 heat wave has been upon us for a few weeks now, and the discussion of potential drought related measures to be taken by the county is in play. Over the course of the last two years, residents of Orange County have seen their grass and landscaping plants die off in the heat due to the restrictions on watering combined with the excessive heat. As the drought brings water levels down to a certain point, the local areas must impose restrictions on the watering that citizens do individually in order to assure that there is enough left over for people and animals to drink. As a community, we must prioritize people and animals over plants in order to assure our survival, which means that even though you might lose money when landscaping plants die off in the summer heat, you must do your part to conserve as well. During drought times, wasting water on plants that serve no purpose except for decoration is irresponsible, and ultimately must not be done. This is a bitter pill to swallow for many residents who have thousands of dollars worth of landscaping installed, however it must be done. Luckily, there are choices that you can make that will keep your home beautiful while also conserving water.
The best thing that you can do to conserve water this summer is to remove your grass and install artificial turf. Real grass in Orange County will need upwards of 50 gallons of water every year per square foot just to survive, and each of those square feet of grass serves no viable function except to give you a soft area on your property. This same thing can be accomplished using artificial turf which is a synthetic plastic product, and does not need water or trimming the way that real grass does. Because it is plastic, it will maintain it’s look and coloring for many years without any maintenance, ultimately keeping the look of a beautifully manicured lawn for the lifetime of your home. For those who are concerned with conserving water, you are doing the most that you can possibly do in order to protect our community from drought. If you are concerned with money and savings, you will no longer have to pay landscapers to work on your yard every month. You will also save on water bills each and every month. If you are concerned about creating a perfect space for your family and pets to spend time in the summer, you will find that artificial turf does the job.
You may have concerns about artificial grass getting hot in the summer sun. While it is true that synthetic turf does not dissipate the heat at the same rates that real grass does, the trick is to simply mist off the area you are going to use a few minutes before using it. This will drop the temperatures significantly, and will make it so that you and your family can comfortably walk around on it with bare feet, even in the hottest weather.
