Artificial lawn?

[rodderz]

If you want Jac, send me a photo of the whole area you are talking about, and I'll do a design for you

[blueoval]

yeah thats not a bad idea Jac re: removing the grass at the driveway area.

I reckon concreting it in so that the cars can easily enter the garage is of prime importance.

Also I didnt know you had and outdoor entertainment area already, my bad. *throws out plans for kick @ss setup for Cobra to enjoy during summer* :P

[XRchic]

Thats not really the driveway there, its just a concrete area next to the house, and leading to the shed. The carports are sort of to the left of those pics above, but we do drive the cars through sometimes, so Eamon can work on them in the shed.

We do need a new BBQ though!!!! Hehe.

Thanks for the info Rod, thats handy to know. I have fertilised the front lawn recently and weeded that, but am yet to do the back. I must get on to that.

Interesting re the prices too - I reckon it would be expensive for all of our lawn.

The main areas are the following:

Back yard:



Around the side as above:



And the front (I just took these, more accurate than old pics):

[XRchic]

Originally Posted by blueoval

agreed. I suggest anything from this catalogue!

http://www.bbqrus.com.au/51315%20BBQ...5B1%5D.qxd.pdf

I'll have that Grand Island Buffet one thanks...

[Falcon Freak]

Where is the "painted green concrete" option? This is very popular in the lebanese community.

FF

[3vXT]

I voted for trying to keep the real lawn.

Nice looking place BTW

[rodderz]

A few idea's should you get rid of the lawn Jac, a lot of people are going for pebbles at the moment of various sizes, makes for a low maintenance front yard

Front yard, pebbles in middle and garden bed around, water feature in centre




Rear yard, more concrete for access to shed, pebbles and garden bed the rest

[XRchic]

That looks awesome!!! I really like that.... Mmmmm. Yes, the pebble idea is getting quite popular. I bet its a costly option though.

[rodderz]

Originally Posted by XRchic

That looks awesome!!! I really like that.... Mmmmm. Yes, the pebble idea is getting quite popular. I bet its a costly option though.

Sort of... smaller pebbles around $75-90/m, larger ones around the $130-145/m mark...but, you don't have to replace them like when you top up mulch

[Fev]

i reckon if you were a kid you would still some how manage to get burns.. and what happens when they get really hot? i betcha they dont reflect heat as well as grass

[XRchic]

Cheers Rod, you have given me some new ideas now!

We went for a drive and saw some new places with yards made up of partly fake lawn, part pebbles and part bark chips/plants. Looked quite good actually. The lawn was so good that we had to get out and touch it to see if it was real or not, and that was with us right up close to it. It feels really nice and soft too. Much softer than grass even, almost velvety.

Well at least it seems there are many options so you can still have a nice front yard during the drought times!

[[Tonko]]

Originally Posted by Laminge

Meh

Too much Italian Blood in me to go past green concrete.

Hehe, do what my Italian neighbour does, spray it with Round-up, sprinkle salt and then spray with oil....
Seriously... he does.... Just so he dosent have to water or mow it, yet he lives on an orchard.... i dont get it....

[LeadFoot81]

I know someone whos used fake grass sparingly in his front garden and it looks alright (very built up, shady garden, lots of trees etc)

I dont know how good the fake grass would look in large patches.

When I mow my grass I always put the lawnmower on the highest setting, if your grass is long and thick, it will protect it's roots from drying out (too much) its inevitable that the grass will go a little yellow and thin out in summer, just keep cutting it long and it will bounce back in the cooler months.

As others have said:
Trees add shade which helps the grass out
Its not worth wasting drinking water on a lawn (personal preference though)

[GRNKPR]

Originally Posted by jcxr

where is GRNKPR when you need him???

im here just saw this one i would try and keep lawn(keeps me in a job)aswell as a softer look on the eye .Your lawn looks in good condition compared to most melbourne lawns

A balanced N P K fertilizer and some wetting agent and a little organics and that will drought proof it and keep it looking good troughout summer

or install Buffalo or one of the couch varietes ver hard wearing and tolerate the dry heati have been putting a fair few in of late

Golden rule"""You can smoke grass but not Synthetic """""""

[Duke]

Great looking place Jac.
When we built our new house we made sure there was as little grass as possible, I hate gardening and mowing.
I have one stretch of grass out the front, the whole rear is concrete and low maintenance garden around the fenceline.

I would like to get the front grass (3.6m wide and 6m long) done in fake if it's as good looking as you say it is Jac.

[rodderz]

As Phil mentioned you can keep your real grass up to scratch but like anything you have to look after it properly.

Sir Walter Buffalo is usually the most drought hardy and around the $10/m² mark but installation and establishment is vital to how well it does. This time of year warming up and needs more care and in Vic a water tank, as you cant water it with mains

[Bucknaked]

I love the whole idea of fake lawn. But I really prefer the look of real lawn. I love the smell of freshly cut lawn. Having said that, I've had weeds for the last 7 years.. 2 houses behind me have just installed fake lawn. Looks great. One has a dog, so I'll be very interested to see how that dog goes trying to bury its bones :hihi:

[DoreSlamR]

Originally Posted by GRNKPR

im here just saw this one i would try and keep lawn(keeps me in a job)aswell as a softer look on the eye .Your lawn looks in good condition compared to most melbourne lawns

A balanced N P K fertilizer and some wetting agent and a little organics and that will drought proof it and keep it looking good troughout summer

or install Buffalo or one of the couch varietes ver hard wearing and tolerate the dry heati have been putting a fair few in of late

Golden rule"""You can smoke grass but not Synthetic """""""

I Highly recommend Palmetto

And Sir Walter

[rodderz]

Palmetto and Sir Walter are basically identical in look and growth, Palmetto is the US bred variety, and is a little less resistant to broadleaf weed herbicides

Same price as each other too

[DoreSlamR]

Originally Posted by rodderz

Palmetto and Sir Walter are basically identical in look and growth, Palmetto is the US bred variety, and is a little less resistant to broadleaf weed herbicides

Same price as each other too

Yeah and you'll find most turf farms will swear by one and not the other, bit like the pepsi/coke battle :

[XRchic]

Here is a pic of the fake grass around the corner from us in the new display village. It is called Limonta New Grass and it looks absolutely stunning:



Here is the link to their wesbsite with more pics in the gallery:

http://www.limontanewgrass.com.au/

[GRNKPR]

Originally Posted by DoreSlamR

I Highly recommend Palmetto

And Sir Walter

same /same

[HLC]

Kikuyu FTW.

[HLC]

wait a minute? who mined this thread by voting in the poll? lol time for some closure :