One in 4 gardens has no grass!

A FRESHLY-MOWN lawn was once a source of pride for millions of British homeowners.

But one in four homes now has no real grass in its garden as the UK paves over its green space, a survey has found.

As gardening falls out of favour with many Britons, households are choosing low maintenance alternatives such as paving, decking and AstroTurf – with almost three- quarters of adults saying that a lawn is a ‘burden’.

One in ten homeowners now has fake grass, with two- thirds claiming they installed it because they do not have enough time to mow the lawn.

And over half of the 1,000 homeowners surveyed would now choose decking, patio space or sheds over grass, while a fifth would prioritise a summer house. Craig Corbett of garden furniture website Alfresia.co.uk, which carried out the survey, said: ‘ As a time-poor nation, we’re constantly looking for ways to maintain our homes and outdoor space, with minimum effort and minimum cost.

‘Maintaining a lawn can take a lot of work. There’s mowing, fertilising and not forgetting the task of watering it when it hasn’t rained for a few days – taking up time that Brits don’t have.’

He added: ‘Of course, having a patio or decking fitted in the garden often means sacrificing some, if not all of the lawn space.

‘These garden fixtures are becoming increasingly common. Adults in the UK do not feel the same way about their lawns as they used to.’

Once a garden faux-pas, artificial grass has been transformed in recent years and is now of higher quality and more realistic than ever.

However it comes at a price, costing £10 to £30 per square metre – compared with just £6 per square metre for real turf.

Tim Rumball, of Amateur Gardening magazine, said recently: ‘Artificial grass these days looks great. You cut it to shape, put it down and you have an instant lawn that you could display at Chelsea and it needs no maintaining.

‘But lawns matter a lot. Plants convert carbon dioxide into oxygen and if you take away all the lawns in Britain you will significantly affect the carbon levels in the atmosphere.’

The report comes after the Royal Horticultural Society found one in three front gardens in the UK – a total of more than five million – now has no plants, while another three million have been completely paved over since 2005.