Artificial Grass

may not have the time for regular mowing or weeding. In such a situation, an artificial grass lawn often works out to be a fantastic option. Yes, it may be an expensive investment but in the long run it looks beautiful and requires very little maintenance.

Why You Should Install Artificial Grass

If you are not convinced about artificial turf installation, you probably need a list of reasons as to why you should consider artificial grass turf. Here are a list of advantages of having an artificial grass lawn and not real grass:

• Little maintenance – Maintaining a real grass lawn requires a lot of work but on the other hand an artificial turf installation will need very little maintenance once it has been installed.
• Ideal for water restrictions – Gardeners living in areas with water restrictions or water shortage often find it very hard to maintain a healthy lawn that they can water regularly. However, an artificial grass lawn requires no watering and is therefore ideal for these areas without worrying about dehydration.
• Suited for non-gardeners – If you are a non-gardener and looking for an easy and convenient way to get a beautiful, no hassle lawn, artificial grass turf is your best option. You have to do close to nothing and will have a pretty lawn all year round.
• Cost effective – Artificial turf installation may come with a large outlay cost but once you have made this investment, you have minimal costs to maintain your artificial grass lawn. Due to almost zero maintenance requirements and no watering needs, an artificial grass lawn works out to be very cost effective in the long run. If you choose to install artificial grass instead of hiring someone to do it, you will save even more money.

Artificial Grass Installtion: Do It Yourself

If you are keen to install your artificial grass lawn yourself, it is possible and could cut down your costs drastically. Here are some tips you might find useful.

• Clean the area you plan on using for your artificial turf installation. Clear all traces of old grass, weeds, dirt etc.
• The area must be leveled so your artificial grass turf is not uneven. If the ground is uneven you might have to lay out some sand to level out the area before laying out the artificial grass.
• Take measurements of the area so you know how much artificial turf you will need for your artificial grass lawn.
• Start laying out the artificial grass and trim it as and when necessary. If you plan on using smaller pieces for your artificial turf installation, then start at the center and start moving towards the outside.
• Laying out the artificial grass turf is not enough, you have to secure it in place with the special glue provided. You might need to use additional nails or weights to ensure the adhesive holds the artificial grass turf in place.
• In order to ensure your artificial grass lawn looks real, you must use some infills such as sand or other soil granules to create a natural effect.

The steps are simple but it is a lot of hard working installing your artificial grass lawn. However, if you do it yourself, you can save money and in the long run, create a cost effective and beautiful lawn in your yard.

What Are Plant Mosses?

Plant mosses, thought to have evolved from primitive vascular plants are very simple plants that lack conventional roots, stems and leaves. Usually hardy plants, mosses grow vertically, not just in moss gardens but almost everywhere except under the sea. These plant mosses are generally of little use to humans or animals but this type of moss gardening is undertaken because of the serenity and meditative calm they spread.

Growing Mosses: Preparing The Soil

Before growing a moss garden, it is important to prepare the soil for your moss lawns. Though mosses kill grass, remove grass beforehand and weed the soil before growing moss. This will ensure easy moss gardening without any competition.

How To Grow Moss

If you are interested in growing a moss garden, it is important you learn how to grow moss. One can either buy mosses at garden stores or transplant them by cutting out a moss mat from a neighboring field or moss garden. Mosses like a pH between 5 to 6 and aluminum sulphate or ferrous sulphate may be added to the soil to lower its pH. Both the soil and moss mat should be moistened before it is placed on the moss garden. Thereafter pack the soil tightly around and beneath it. Moss gardening transplants occur well when temperatures are cool and there is high moisture. Even if one picks up some moss and churns it in the blender with some diluted buttermilk or beer and then transplants it, moss lawns will soon grow.

Water & Shade For The Plant Mosses

While most mosses require some moisture and low sunlight, some of them can survive lengthy dry periods. Growing moss lawns is easier in the shade with moderate amounts of sunlight occasionally. Again, if one stretch of the garden yields lush moss lawns, one can easily cultivate them there without much difficulty.

Why Grow Plant Mosses & Moss On Lawns

There are a number of reasons to take up moss gardening and cultivate a moss garden if you are a gardener.

• A moss garden requires very little care and watering as revealed in the article in the New York Times (1) about moss gardening. This also makes a moss garden very drought tolerant.
• Unlike many plants that contribute to pollen allergies, a moss garden does not, making them hearty and healthy plants in that respect for a moss lawns.
• Moss on lawns takes longer to grow than grass but once they have provided a vivid color to the landscape they are there to stay. Moss gardening does not require fertilizers, mowing and good soil like grass and can survive on less water making it much more tempting to start a moss garden or moss lawns.
• Most disease and insects don’t affect a moss garden although rodents, weeds, excessive sun or shade leads to damping off.
• A moss garden provide aesthetic beauty.

While there are many who regard moss lawns as a sign of a poor garden, other nature lovers believe a moss garden is much more environment friendly as moss lawns do not require  chemical fertilizers that contain many harmful ingredients. Moreover, the noisy sound of lawn mowers is never heard on moss lawns! One should therefore consider the choice of moss gardening and if you really want to get creative, try this method of a moss garden in a kitchen sink recommended by the Australian National Botanic Gardens (2).

References:

1. Moss Makes A Lush, No-Care Lawn – New York Times
2. Moss Garden in a kitchen sink – Australian National Botanic Gardens
3. Moss – An Amazing Plant – Moss Acres