we have a backyard that we want to landscape some portion, with grass. I am confused between natural and artificial. Artificial turf vendors say its more green because it uses no water, but it is still plastic with PAHs, lead etc; Natural grass is great but needs lot of water and atleast some pesticides and herbicides (I have seen people who don't use them or who do use them and most of the time the grass is dead. We live in Southern California).
what is a better choice when it comes to natural grass (type of grass, how to maintain) and artificial grass (say a particular brand is better than other).
Overall I still lean towards natural Bermuda sod, but is there a simple non toxic way to avoid weeds (especially the clover leaf that took over my neighbors entire sod). or any other ground cover that's easy to maintain and comfortable to play on?
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Go with the Artificial Turf. I Live in Mesquite Nevada and Our Casinos have All gone To Artificial Turf To Conserve on Water and Mant. Cost.It Looks Great Easy to Mant.Bermuda Grass is a No No.It Takes Over EVERYTHING.LOL and It Dies out in The winter.So Your Probably Going to Spend A Great Deal More in the Long Run With The Natural Lawn.Mant. Cost,Water,Chemicals to Get rid of Weeds and Bugs...The Lead is Like Alison said Just Bad Press.The Landscapers Blow the Leaves of the Artificial turf and Now and Then They Rinse it off due to Sand build up.Hope this Helps
Artificial is better in the long run, and that stuff about lead is BS. Some very bad testing created a lot of bad press but it's just not true. None of it breaks down to release lead.
I'm a fan of Foreverlawn. It requires little or no fill (something you should look for.) Art.lawns that require fill are kind of a headache as the fill can shift, get tracked around the yard and into the house or if you have strong winds even blow around like sand dunes.
Granted, Art.lawn doesn't feel cool under your bare feet but if you want the look without the chemicals, weeds, mowing, stained clothes, bugs, and big water bills it's a great choice.
Bermuda is such a pain since it dies out in the winter. Are you willing to aid grass die to your costs? And remember, bermuda invades everything around it. It will be in all your flower beds, and the rest of your garden where you cant mow it down. It's miserable stuff in my opinion.
Why now not think about other choices like put down sand. The form of sand yu would find in a sand box or on the seaside. It's smooth for the youngster in the event that they fall and likewise doubles as a digging area to play underneath the trampoline. My kids loved it.