As of June 1st Los Angeles County has imposed strict water usage regulations on its citizens because we are in a serious drought. 2007 saw the least rainfall of the last 150 years. And yet despite L.A.’s dry climate, you’ll find vibrant green lawns all around the city-from public establishments to private homes.

We need to kick our addiction to having pristine grass lawns – but the question is how to do that?

Co-founders Tracy Hepler and Lauren Johanson have found some interesting “lawnternatives” and will each be doing their best to sway you to her side.

Lauren Johanson: I think good alternatives to traditional lawns are synthetic lawns. It probably sounds funny to promote plastic grass on an eco-minded site, but I still think it’s a good alternative-primarily for people who have the lawn concept stuck in their heads. I grew up in northern New Jersey and had rolling hills of grass. To me it just feels right to have kids playing on grass.

Tracy Hepler: Yeah, but that was in Northern New Jersey-this is Southern California; it’s a Mediterranean climate. Are kids in Arizona missing out because their yards are filled with rocks and cacti?

LJ: Well, probably not-but for these people who come from New Jersey and other places where the green lawn concept is second nature-synthetic lawns seem to offer a viable alternative. Maybe not the best one, but a relatively good option.

TH: Off the bat, I’m just not a fan of synthetic grass because synthetic means that it’s made from plastic and other unnatural resources and chemical-based materials. If I had kids, the idea of them running barefoot on plastic and chemicals all day doesn’t sound too appealing. It’s artificial and I feel that Los Angeles has enough fakeness and plastic as it is. I just can’t imagine waking up every morning, walking outside and viewing my nice green plastic grass.

LJ: The synthetic grass industry is starting to adapt quickly; it’s playing with recyclables and reusing unwanted materials. We can be really forward thinking in the way we create lawns, just like how companies such as Patagonia use

recycled plastic bottles to make clothing. And what is interesting to me is that it is a one-time investment. You don’t have to constantly maintain it, you can keep it for 10 to 15 years and when you want to replace it you can pass it along to an organization that can make use of it.

TH: Okay, so say I use it for 10 years and then I give it to a school-what happens to it once the school can no longer use it. What is the lifecycle? Where will it go?-even if it has been used for 20 years, it is still here.

LJ: Ideally by that time there will be technologies that allow it to be repurposed.

TH: Ideally, but unfortunately we’re not there yet, which is why I’m more a fan of the natural alternatives to lawns, specifically native plants that are drought-tolerant.. I think if you have kids it might be a little bit harder, but if you live near parks and other community centers maybe that can be where a more communal lawn space is and then everyone doesn’t have to have their own individual lawn. I don’t think having a lawn is make or break to your childhood. So if you’re willing to think outside the box you can look into succulents which can provide useful plants such as aloe (a plant you can use for a cut or sunburn), planting a vegetable garden so that the water you do use is creating something you can use (minimizing your carbon footprint by growing your own food,) or you can look into more indigenous grasses like Mexican feather grass or clover lawns. Also you can make a rock garden-this is probably better for people without kids, but again you’re using your resources and you can make a really natural and relaxing space.

My point is that you don’t have to have grass-even though we have this preconceived notion of what a yard should be, the bottom line is that it can be whatever we want it to be and if the environment is a passion for us than we can be creative and resourceful in creating alternatives.

LJ: My parting fight for the synthetic lawn if you will is that it is great for where it is truly necessary-for example, you’re not going to play golf on a bed of rocks or a field of succulents, you need grass or at least synthetic grass. So in these types of public locations-resorts, baseball fields, stadiums etc the least we could do is switch all of these over to synthetic lawns so that we can use our water sustainably, where it is most needed and not for these sorts of establishments.

TH: Well when it comes to those sorts of situations, I think I agree with you-but I still don’t want a synthetic lawn at my home

Want to get in on the debate? Let us know your thoughts on lawn alternatives. Do you agree with Tracy or Lauren, or do you think they’re both wrong? Weigh in below.

Also for more tips on how to be save water in every aspect of your life please visit www.bewaterwise.com and in Los Angeles visit www.ladwp.com

Please remember that with these new regulations you can only water lawns on Mondays and Thursday before 9 a.m. and after 4 p.m. If you break those rules, your neighbors can call and tattle on you.

LJ: And we encourage tattling!
TH: Well…just don’t water your lawn when you’re not supposed to.

Images via MSNBC, hotgardens.net, Aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu and Synlawn

Tags: Drought Tolerant Plants, dry climate, Green LA, LADWP, Los Angeles Drought, los angeles river, owens river, synthetic lawns, water resources, Water Saving