Artificial turf may not be a common sight in Florida yards, but a new University of Florida survey shows some homeowners are warming up to the idea. The appeal is simple: less mowing, less irrigation and far less time spent wrestling with lawn equipment.
But the people who install synthetic grass are not looking at it through rose-colored glasses. They’re also the ones most aware of its drawbacks – especially the intense heat it can generate under the Florida sun.
Laura Warner, a professor of agricultural education and communication at the UF Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS), presented some survey findings at the UF/IFAS Urban Landscape Summit on April 21 in Orlando.
UF/IFAS faculty are examining alternatives to traditional landscapes — made up of lawns and shrub beds — in part because this is a growing trend in Florida.
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But, as Warner said, homeowners and contractors view non-plant landscapes through “fundamentally different lenses.” In the survey, faculty refer to landscapers as “green- industry” professionals. Such contractors install environmentally friendly landscaping.
Warner leads a team of UF/IFAS faculty studying the perceptions of Florida homeowners and those in the green industry about landscaping without plants. They surveyed 121 contractors and 1,415 residents.
The survey – funded by the Florida Nursery, Growers and Landscape Association and the UF/IFAS Center for Land Use Efficiency — showed that both residents and green-industry professionals view reduced need for irrigation as the top benefit of predominantly non-plant landscapes.
Beyond that agreement, though, homeowners and contractors differ in how they view the benefits and drawbacks of artificial landscapes.
“Consumer demand for non-plant landscape elements appears more nuanced than some broad narratives imply,” Warner said. “While interest in some materials as major features within the landscape is relatively low, others – particularly rocks, gravel and natural mulches – show more variability in use and interest.”
Residents consistently rated perceived benefits of these alternative landscapes higher than did green-industry professionals.
Industry professionals, on the other hand, consistently rated potential drawbacks as more important.
“This pattern was especially pronounced for materials such as artificial turf and rubber mulch,” Warner said.
Claire Lewis, Florida-Friendly Landscaping™ (FFL) director and a study co-author, recognizes the value of the perceptions of homeowners and contractors when it comes to alternative lawns. She adds that the best way to protect landscapes is by sticking to FFL principles.
“The first FFL principle is ‘Right Plant, Right Place.’ Synthetic turf is not a living plant, and it does not provide the ecosystem services that a real landscape does,” Lewis said. “The goal of FFL is to protect our natural resources. The best way to do that is with a landscape of well-chosen Florida-Friendly plants.”
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