Probably any time you couple artificial and something together in a sentence, people look at you with suspicious eyes of scepticism. So, imagine the idea of replacing something real with something that looks and feels natural but isn’t?

Behold! Artificial grass (insert smug grin here).

What has artificial grass to do with Manchester? Good question. Manchester has the country’s 5th-largest population and is within the UK’s 2nd-most populous area. It is often referred to as “the second city of the United Kingdom”. 

At the turn of the 19th century and brought on the massive boom in textile manufacture during the Industrial Revolution, the city’s unplanned urbanisation began to expand at a rate akin to “A racing car, passing by, like Lady Godiva”.

Now that the short history lesson is over, what it shows us about Manchester is that as the city has grown and expanded through industrialisation and population, these days; you’ll be hard-pressed to find large sunny gardens inner-city and downtown, you know?

Enter artificial grass! The surprisingly innovative solution to achieving the atmosphere and aesthetic of a mowed lawn garden at a fraction of the maintenance, the bugs, the (long-term) cost.

You’re never going to have to mow, feed or water it. Ever again. What a win! Artificial grass Industry Giant: Artificial has developed different types of synthetic grass that come with an eight-year guarantee upon installation.

In fact, they emphasise that their artificial grass will last up to 20 years maintenance-free, depending on how much traffic (human/pet) the grass is exposed to.

How is this good for the city of Manchester?

You can just about install artificial grass anywhere. We’re talking home lawns, schools and nurseries, putting greens, commercial areas and sports pitches, which brings me to my next point.

Manchester is a city of firsts. In fact, there is an old saying, “What Manchester does today, the rest of the world does tomorrow.” The industrial estate created at Old Trafford’s was the first in the whole world! 

Speaking of Old Trafford. Did you know that it is the largest club football stadium in the United Kingdom and that its pitch (along with that of the Trafford Training Center) is a hybrid grass sportsfield with natural grass combined with artificial grass? 

This fabulous product is known as Desso Grassmaster! 

With low maintenance and no need for water; for the city as a whole and participating residents (even those living in apartments and wanting their own patch of lawn); the biggest positive is cost, convenience, and let’s not turn our noses up at how great manicured lawns look.

Now, if we got your attention, you can click here to see more info about them.

But is it good for the environment?

This is an excellent question. Let’s first look at natural grass. No doubt, it absorbs moisture, stays cool, and provides a home for bugs and birds. But grass lawns are not the natural vegetation of the environment, and they don’t just magically happen.

Native bush and grassland areas had to be cleared for immaculate expanses of shiny green carpet to exist. So there was a cost to the environment. Not only that, the first lawns were fertilised naturally, too. With poop. Yes. Animal poop.

Moving on! Now, lawns need to be mowed, and last time we checked, lawnmowers don’t run on thin air, but rather petrol or some are even electric. The emissions and electricity usage alone is eye-watering.

Now to fertilise natural grass, we use toxic pesticides and fertilisers. Add your excessive watering to that. We have run-off of these into other natural water sources (through soil absorption), and it’s just ugly.

Now artificial grass. We’re not going to lie. We can’t deny that artificial grass is made from synthetic fibres, which negatively impact the environment. To counteract that, it has low to no carbon emissions and no need for water or fertilising.

Back onto those synthetic fibres. Artificial grass does not have to harm the environment when recycled or reused. There are even brands of artificial grass made from 80-90% recycled plastic and rubber.

Case Closed!

Manchester is a city on the hunt for bigger and better. Artificial grass is just that. It ticks all the boxes of the city’s fast-paced, ever-growing character of architecture, culture, science, engineering, social impact and sports. 

There is no single Manchester facet that artificial grass can’t relate to. And it appears that Jim Boeheim (American basketball coach to Syracuse) knows just what we mean when he says; 

“I’ve always felt like a guy whose grass is greener on my side of the fence.”