Grass v Gravel - written by Lee Bell

When creating a new look for your home, it is important to get your outside space right. This can make a big difference to the property's curb appeal and can alter the experience of living there. But should you use grass to create a classic lawn, or should you use gravel for a more contemporary look? Which is likely to create the most favorable visual effect? Which is most practical?

Mostly, this depends on where you live. In a dry climate, a lawn can require a lot of watering to keep it looking good, using up local resources. However, you can mitigate this to an extent by choosing an indigenous grass. In areas that experience tornadoes and high winds, gravel can be a bad idea as wind can blow it around, possibly ruining your house or car. The smart thing is to make the right choice for your particular situation.

Your Yard Can Look Awesome

No matter what material you select, your yard is going to want your attention. Do not choose gravel because you think it requires no work. That simply is not the case. Course gravel will look better longer, as smaller gravels tend to get shifted around and lost easily. You will have to put additional gravel down from time to time. There is also the work of picking up gravel from places it ends up where you do not want it to be.

Another aspect to maintaining gravel that many people have misconceptions about is that weeds are more easily managed in gravel. The disadvantage with gravel is that you can not simply push the lawn mower over it. Rather, the weed will have to be removed by hand or sprayed with a chemical weed killer. If you place your gravel on top of a weed cloth, this will greatly reduce the amount of weeds that you end up with. Choose a cloth rather than plastic, because plastic causes water to puddle. If a weed does appear, you will want to continue to apply weed killer to the area so that you do not end up with more than one weed coming up in that spot.

How Do You Use Your Yard

Whether you choose gravel or grass will also depend on how you want to use your yard. Pets generally prefer grass. And children who fall on gravel can hurt themselves, so it is not the best choice for play areas. Likewise, if you have an area with regular foot traffic, gravel will stand up to the strain much better than grass. It also won't turn to dust in summer or mud during rainy parts of the year. You can even use it as extra parking space.

Think about the look of your house and neighborhood as well. What is the best option for your area? What will look most favorable in regards to your home and the homes around it? Once you have the gravel or grass put in, it will be difficult to change, so make sure you are positive that you know what you want!