Lawn can be a great use of backyard space, but it also requires a lot of maintenance. Between watering, weeding, and everything else, you can end up spending a lot of time and money keeping your yard green and tidy. For some, this may be an enjoyable way to spend time, but it is not for everyone.
Instead, many choose to lay artificial grass to achieve the same green look and soft feel, but without all the extra work involved in caring for live plants. While it won’t look the same, it can still be a very attractive option, when installed correctly.
Today’s artificial grass is much higher in quality and style than in previous years. It is possible to buy grass that looks convincing and feels good on the skin, rather than looking fake and sticky. The differentiating factor will be how you place it. It is possible to simply lay the grass rolls on top of the existing cut grass, but this will cause you problems in the long run.
In fact, there are several key mistakes gardeners often make when laying turf on their lawn, and all of them can undermine your beautiful green canvas. Avoid these mistakes and you can ensure that your garden looks as close to the real thing as possible, day after day.
1. “Facial weight” and “total weight” are mixed
Before purchasing your lawn, you will need to select the right product for your yard. Different grasses will vary in color and thickness, which will greatly affect the final effect. But it’s not just about finding the right shade of green. What you should look for is a high face weight, as this refers to the amount of artificial yarn fibers in the surface layer.
Higher front weights are denser, softer, and appear more realistic, which is what most people want from their lawn. However, the product may also indicate its total weight, which includes not only the artificial fibers but also the various support materials attached to the grass. This number will always be greater than the face weight and can distract you from a lower than desired fiber count. It’s easy to confuse face weight and total weight if you don’t read the label carefully, which can lead you to spend money on a product you think is higher quality than it is.
2. You don’t order enough grass at once
Before purchasing your lawn, you will need to select the right product for your yard. Different grasses will vary in color and thickness, which will greatly affect the final effect. But it’s not just about finding the right shade of green. What you should look for is a high face weight, as this refers to the amount of artificial yarn fibers in the surface layer.
Higher front weights are denser, softer, and appear more realistic, which is what most people want from their lawn. However, the product may also indicate its total weight, which includes not only the artificial fibers but also the various support materials attached to the grass. This number will always be greater than the face weight and can distract you from a lower than desired fiber count.
It’s easy to confuse face weight and total weight if you don’t read the label carefully, which can lead you to spend money on a product you think is higher quality than it is.
3. You don’t prepare the ground properly
Just because grass is artificial doesn’t mean you can lay it on the ground without any prep work. It may be tempting to simply mow the grass and place the grass rolls on top, but this will cause problems. If the ground has uneven surfaces or bumps, this will distort the grass and create a visual disruption from the start. If there is not good drainage, it is easy for puddles of water to accumulate which will damage the grass over time.
It is important to first clean the grass area and remove stones, weeds and other debris from the soil. Next, you’ll need to remove the top layers of soil to make room for the grass base; If you don’t do this, the grass will rise higher than the rest of the yard. Installing a grass base, usually made from a mixture of gravel, stone or crushed rock, promotes sufficient drainage so that the grass does not accumulate water and develop mold. If possible, compact the soil before installing the base to create an even smoother surface. Finally, water the soil to further compact the materials and test drainage.
4. You forget about the weed barrier.
Once the ground has been prepared, it is tempting to jump straight to the grass base and artificial turf. However, even if you have done a good job of preparation and removed all visible weeds, there is still a chance that weeds will spread from other locations and begin to grow through the underlying soil base. This growth may attempt to push through the grass, causing distortion and possibly damage to the artificial grass.
While you can’t eliminate all traces of weeds, you can lay down a protective membrane that will prevent weed growth from penetrating and damaging your lawn. These plastic membranes are placed on top of the soil and under the base of the turf, adding almost no additional height or volume but ensuring a smooth top surface.
5. The grass is not laid in the same direction
Artificial grass will never look like real grass, in part because real grass is varied and messy, while grass is uniform. Rolls of grass have fibers that all face in one direction, with little differentiation between them. This is because, like carpet, artificial grass has hair. However, you can help make grass look more believable simply by the way you lay it.
While some products will have completely straight fibers, most will lean at a slight angle, an angle that will be very visible if the rolls are facing different directions. Not only will this look a little messy, but it will also be visually jarring, making it clear that you’re wearing a fake material at a glance.
To help your lawn look as real as possible, it is important to ensure that each roll of grass faces the same direction. If possible, angle the fibers so they face the house so you can look into the pile; This seems more convincing.
6. Use straight seams instead of S-seams
Grass comes in rolls, which will almost certainly be too narrow to completely cover an area. You’ll need to line up the rolls side by side to make sure the entire field is properly grassed, but this can create very obvious lines if the joints are straight. These lines make the grass look less convincing and lifelike, so they should be avoided.
The most effective way to avoid straight seams is to create a new seam, one in a curved S shape. The grass rolls will not line up perfectly with each other, but will overlap in some places, creating a much more organic and imperfect look. If you are going to cut these joints yourself, you should do this before laying the turf, as you want there to be minimal movement and disruption once the turf is in place; This can drag soil, create uneven surfaces, and undermine all the good preparatory work.
7. You throw away the leftover scraps.
If you’ve avoided all of these mistakes, you’ll have purchased the right amount of grass to cover your entire backyard at once and then probably trimmed it to create S-shaped joints. This will result in extra artificial grass scraps, plus the remaining strips of the grass rolls. It can be tempting to throw them away and save storage space, especially if you’ve done a good job of laying the grass so it looks pristine. After all, artificial grass should hold up without much maintenance, so why plan for a rainy day?
Still, it would be wiser to have these materials on hand for the future. The best way to repair artificial grass is to use the same grass, which may no longer be available when the damage finally occurs. Don’t have to search for the same product or a close enough competitor before you can make any corrections. Awkwardly shaped debris is the most ingenious way to plug gaps or fill worn areas, prolonging the life of your lawn and saving you money.
- Natural Pest Repellents: 9 Ways to Save Money and Avoid the Exterminator
- How to get rid of mosquitoes in your home and garden
- 4 common plants that bring insects to your garden: what you need to know
