Investing In A Water Smart Lawn

Southern California was hit hard by drought this year, causing many residents of places like Orange County and Anaheim to watch their investment in their landscaping dry up and eventually die.  Many were left with completely dead lawns, and others were left with lawns that might not be dead, but are very close and need rehabilitation in order to look good again.  This issue came about because of mandatory watering restrictions that are triggered when water reserves drop below a certain level that would assure people that there is enough drinking water for all citizens.  At that point, the counties under conservation of water by making it illegal to water your lawn at certain times, and for certain lengths of time.  The amount of water that you can legally provide is not nearly enough for your lawn to thrive, a typical California lawn needing more than 55 gallons of water every year just to survive per square foot.  It is important to understand that nobody wants to destroy your investment, but people are more important than your grass.

This winter, the watering restrictions have been lifted in many areas and you are allowed to water as much as you need again.  Many citizens of the area now face a decision to make, should you put the money into rehabbing your lawn and bringing it back to a state of looking good or should you remove it and use the money to install a water smart land covering like artificial turf or pavers? With no ability to assure anyone that the drought will not start again in the summer, many are choosing to install artificial turf instead.  Artificial turf is a synthetic product that looks and feels exactly like grass, only it is not a living plant and as a result does not need water in order to look good.  Once the living lawn is removed and replaced with artificial turf, then the drought conditions will have no effect on your landscape whatsoever.

Now is the time to make the decisions as far as what you are going to do about your landscaping next summer.  If you are planning on putting in pavers for seating areas and artificial turf for play areas, then winter is the perfect time to do it.  Spring will be here in only a few months, and as the weather gets better and people start to spend more time outside again, having your new landscape already installed will be far better than waiting for the process once the weather is nice and you want to use the space.  You have the ability to do good for the community and for yourself at the same time, saving water that will be used for drinking instead of running down the gutter, and saving money on the upkeep of your lawn at the same time.  Installing artificial turf is a good move for everyone, and there are nothing but benefits to it.  Maybe grass wasn't the best idea for your home anyway, so taking the damage that the summer cuased as a good thing instead of a bad thing is the way to go.