Enhancing Your Homers Appeal with Synthetic Grass

Enhancing Your Homers Appeal with Synthetic Grass

Las Vegas Artificial Turf For Apartments

Choosing the Right Synthetic Grass for Your Lawn


Enhancing Your Homes Appeal with Synthetic Grass: Choosing the Right Stuff


Alright, so youre thinkin bout boostin your homes curb appeal, huh? Quality Artificial Grass in Las Vegas Nevada. Smart move! And guess what? Synthetic grass, or artificial turf as some folks call it, can be a real game-changer. But, and this is a big BUT, you cant just grab any old roll of green plastic and expect miracles. Choosing the right synthetic grass is, like, totally crucial.


Its not a one-size-fits-all kinda deal. Theres different pile heights (thats how tall the blades are), different densities (how many blades are packed together), and different materials (polyethylene, polypropylene, nylon – oh my!). You wouldnt want a putting green texture if you got kids runnin around, would ya? (Probably not!).


Think about how you actually use your lawn. Is it mostly for show, just something pretty to look at? Or is it a high-traffic zone? Doin some research, readin reviews, and maybe even gettin some samples is a good idea. Dont be afraid to ask questions either!


And lets not forget about the infill. Infill is that stuff they put between the blades, like sand or crumb rubber. It helps the blades stand up, adds cushion, and helps with drainage (which you definitely need!).

Enhancing Your Homers Appeal with Synthetic Grass - Las Vegas Turf For High Traffic Areas

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Different infills have different properties, so look into that, too.


Ultimately, picking the perfect synthetic grass isnt rocket science, but it does require a bit of thought. Dont rush into it, consider your needs, and youll be on your way to a beautiful, low-maintenance lawn thatll make your neighbors green with envy! (Pun intended, ha!) Youll not regret it! Choosing wisely is important!

Installation Tips for a Professional-Looking Finish


Hey there! So youve decided to give your home that lush, green look with synthetic grass? Awesome choice! But let's talk about making sure it looks as professional as possible. Installing synthetic grass can be a big job, and you dont want to end up with a patchy, uneven result. Here are some tips to help you get it right!


First things first, don't underestimate the importance of preparation. You need to make sure the area where you're installing the grass is completely free of debris and obstacles. This means getting rid of rocks, sticks, and any other junk that could mess up the installation. Trust me, this step can save you a lot of headaches later on.


Another thing to keep in mind is the base. A good, solid base is crucial for a professional-looking finish. You'll want to lay down some gravel or sand to provide a stable foundation. Don't skimp on this part – it's really the backbone of your synthetic grass installation.


Now, when it comes to cutting the grass to fit around obstacles like trees or flower beds, be precise! Use a sharp, clean blade to cut the grass. Avoid leaving any ragged edges because they can easily unravel and look unsightly. It's a bit tedious, but it's worth it in the end.


And speaking of edges, you'll want to make sure they're neat and tidy. Edging is a key part of achieving that polished look. You can use edging tools or even brick to define the boundaries of your synthetic grass. Just make sure everything is level and straight.


Neglecting the seams is another common mistake. When you're putting down the synthetic grass, make sure the seams are overlapped just a bit and then stitched together. This will prevent any gaps or separation that can make your installation look amateur. It might take some time, but it's definitely worth the effort.


Lastly, don't forget to sweep or vacuum the area once everything is installed. This will remove any loose fibers or dirt that may have accumulated during the installation process. It's a small step, but it can make a big difference in the overall appearance.


So, there you have it! Best Artificial Turf For Las Vegas Homes Following these tips should help you achieve a professional-looking finish for your synthetic grass installation. Good luck, and remember – patience is key!

Maintenance and Care Guide for Longevity


Alright, so youve got yourself some synthetic grass, huh? Smart move! But don't think that means you can just, like, totally forget about it (lol, you wish!). Even though it aint real, it still needs a little TLC to keep lookin' its best and, ya know, last a good long time. Thats where this here Maintenance and Care Guide for Longevity comes in.


Basically, you gotta think of it as, well, almost like a pet. It doesnt need food or walks, obviously, but it does need some attention. Were talking about preventing things like, say, leaves from piling up and creatin a soggy mess underneath. Regular brushing – a leaf blower works wonders, BTW – will keep the blades upright and prevent matting. No one wants flat, sad-looking turf!


And what about those occasional spills? Dont panic! Most messes can be cleaned up with just some soap and water. Just avoid harsh chemicals; they can, like, totally wreck the color and texture. And for pet owners? Well, lets just say regular rinsing is your new best friend. You don't want that smell lingerin', do ya? Yuck.


Honestly, its not rocket science. Just a little bit of effort here and there will make a huge difference in how long your synthetic grass stays looking fantastic. Follow these simple guidelines, and youll be enjoying that lush, green lawn for years to come! I cant believe how manageable this is!

Additional Enhancements: Landscaping Ideas with Synthetic Grass


When it comes to sprucing up your home, additional enhancements through landscaping ideas with synthetic grass can really make a difference! You know, sometimes you might think about going all out with real grass, but lets face it, maintenance can be a real pain in the neck. Thats where synthetic grass steps in, saving you time and effort while still giving your outdoor space that lush, green look.


First off, you dont have to worry about watering it every day or dealing with those pesky weeds popping up everywhere. And hey, if you ever have guests over, there wont be any muddy shoes to clean up afterwards! Its a win-win situation, really.


Now, heres the fun part - with synthetic grass, you can get creative with your landscaping ideas. You dont have to stick to just putting down plain old grass. Think about adding some artificial flowers or plants to break up the monotony. Or, how about creating a little pathway with some decorative stepping stones? Those can really enhance the look of your yard without breaking the bank.


Another idea is to install a few artificial trees. They can look incredibly realistic, especially if you choose ones with LED lights embedded in the branches. Las Vegas Artificial Turf For Apartments This way, you can enjoy a bit of nature even when its dark outside. Plus, you wont have to worry about trimming them or dealing with fallen leaves (because there arent any!).


And speaking of trees, dont forget about incorporating some shrubs or bushes into your design. They can add depth and texture to your space, and with synthetic options, theyll never need pruning. You can focus on relaxing in your backyard instead of constantly worrying about upkeep.


One thing to keep in mind though, is not to overdo it. You dont want your yard to look too fake - balance is key. A mix of natural and synthetic elements can create a beautiful, cohesive look thats both low-maintenance and visually appealing.


Lastly, don't dismiss the potential of using synthetic grass for areas other than your lawn. How about creating an artificial turf area for your pets? They'll love having a soft, comfy space to play in, and you wont have to stress about keeping real grass healthy and growing.


So, there you have it - some unique landscaping ideas with synthetic grass that can definitely boost your homes appeal. Just remember to keep things interesting and not go too overboard. Happy designing!

Featured In

Central Park in Manhattan, the first landscaped urban park in the United States

Landscape design is an independent profession and a design and art tradition, practiced by landscape designers, combining nature and culture. In contemporary practice, landscape design bridges the space between landscape architecture and garden design.[1]

Design scope

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Landscape design focuses on both the integrated master landscape planning of a property and the specific garden design of landscape elements and plants within it. The practical, aesthetic, horticultural, and environmental sustainability are also components of landscape design, which is often divided into hardscape design and softscape design. Landscape designers often collaborate with related disciplines such as architecture, civil engineering, surveying, landscape contracting, and artisan specialties.

Design projects may involve two different professional roles: landscape design and landscape architecture.

  • Landscape design typically involves artistic composition and artisanship, horticultural finesse and expertise, and emphasis on detailed site involvement from conceptual stages through to final construction.
  • Landscape architecture focuses more on urban planning, city and regional parks, civic and corporate landscapes, large scale interdisciplinary projects, and delegation to contractors after completing designs.

There can be a significant overlap of talent and skill between the two roles, depending on the education, licensing, and experience of the professional. Both landscape designers and landscape architects practice landscape design.[2]

Design approach

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Autumn colours at Stourhead gardens

The landscape design phase consists of research, gathering ideas, and setting a plan. Design factors include objective qualities such as: climate and microclimates; topography and orientation, site drainage and groundwater recharge; municipal and resource building codes; soils and irrigation; human and vehicular access and circulation; recreational amenities (i.e., sports and water); furnishings and lighting; native plant habitat botany when present; property safety and security; construction detailing; and other measurable considerations.

Design factors also include subjective qualities such as genius loci (the special site qualities to emphasize); client's needs and preferences; desirable plants and elements to retain on site, modify, or replace, and that may be available for borrowed scenery from beyond; artistic composition from perspectives of both looking upon and observing from within; spatial development and definition – using lines, sense of scale, and balance and symmetry; plant palettes; and artistic focal points for enjoyment. There are innumerable other design factors and considerations brought to the complex process of designing a garden that is beautiful, well-functioning, and that thrives over time.

The up-and-coming practice of online landscape design allows professional landscapers to remotely design and plan sites through manipulation of two-dimensional images without ever physically visiting the location. Due to the frequent lack of non-visual, supplementary data such as soil assessments and pH tests, online landscaping necessarily must focus on incorporating only plants which are tolerant across many diverse soil conditions.

Training

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André Le Nôtre

Historically, landscape designers trained by apprenticing—such as André Le Nôtre, who apprenticed with his father before designing the Gardens of Versailles—to accomplished masters in the field, with the titular name varying and reputation paramount for a career. The professional section of garden designers in Europe and the Americas went by the name "Landscape Gardener". In the 1890s, the distinct classification of landscape architect was created, with educational and licensing test requirements for using the title legally. Beatrix Farrand, the sole woman in the founding group, refused the title preferring Landscape Gardener. Matching the client and technical needs of a project, and the appropriate practitioner with talent, legal qualifications, and experienced skills, surmounts title nomenclature.[citation needed]

Institutional education in landscape design appeared in the early 20th century. Over time it became available at various levels. Ornamental horticulture programs with design components are offered at community college and universities within schools of agriculture or horticulture, with some beginning to offer garden or landscape design certificates and degrees. Departments of landscape architecture are located within university schools of architecture or environmental design, with undergraduate and graduate degrees offered. Specialties and minors are available in horticultural botany, horticulture, natural resources, landscape engineering, construction management, fine and applied arts, and landscape design history. Traditionally, hand-drawn drawings documented the design and position of features for construction, but Landscape design software is frequently used now.[citation needed]

Other routes of training are through informal apprenticeships with practicing landscape designers, landscape architects, landscape contractors, gardeners, nurseries and garden centers, and docent programs at botanical and public gardens. Since the landscape designer title does not have a college degree or licensing requirements to be used, there is a very wide range of sophistication, aesthetic talent, technical expertise, and specialty strengths to be responsibly matched with specific client and project requirements.[citation needed]

Gardening

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Many landscape designers have an interest and involvement with gardening, personally or professionally. Gardens are dynamic and not static after construction and planting are completed, and so in some ways are "never done". Involvement with landscape management and direction of the ongoing garden direction, evolution, and care depend on the professional's and client's needs and inclinations. As with the other interrelated landscape disciplines, there can be an overlap of services offered under the titles of landscape designer or professional gardener.[2]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "When is a garden designer a landscape designer? Indeed, when is a garden a landscape – or vice-versa?". Bowles & Wyer. 2012-04-11. Archived from the original on 2016-06-17. Retrieved 2016-05-17.
  2. ^ a b "Question & Answer". ASLA. Retrieved 2016-05-17.

 

Land cover surrounding Madison, Wisconsin. Fields are colored yellow and brown and urban surfaces are colored red.
Impervious surfaces surrounding Madison, Wisconsin
Canopy cover surrounding Madison, Wisconsin

Landscape ecology is the science of studying and improving relationships between ecological processes in the environment and particular ecosystems. This is done within a variety of landscape scales, development spatial patterns, and organizational levels of research and policy.[1][2][3] Landscape ecology can be described as the science of "landscape diversity" as the synergetic result of biodiversity and geodiversity.[4]

As a highly interdisciplinary field in systems science, landscape ecology integrates biophysical and analytical approaches with humanistic and holistic perspectives across the natural sciences and social sciences. Landscapes are spatially heterogeneous geographic areas characterized by diverse interacting patches or ecosystems, ranging from relatively natural terrestrial and aquatic systems such as forests, grasslands, and lakes to human-dominated environments including agricultural and urban settings.[2][5][6]

The most salient characteristics of landscape ecology are its emphasis on the relationship among pattern, process and scales, and its focus on broad-scale ecological and environmental issues. These necessitate the coupling between biophysical and socioeconomic sciences. Key research topics in landscape ecology include ecological flows in landscape mosaics, land use and land cover change, scaling, relating landscape pattern analysis with ecological processes, and landscape conservation and sustainability.[7] Landscape ecology also studies the role of human impacts on landscape diversity in the development and spreading of new human pathogens that could trigger epidemics.[8][9]

Terminology

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The German term Landschaftsökologie – thus landscape ecology – was coined by German geographer Carl Troll in 1939.[10] He developed this terminology and many early concepts of landscape ecology as part of his early work, which consisted of applying aerial photograph interpretation to studies of interactions between environment and vegetation.

Explanation

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Heterogeneity is the measure of how parts of a landscape differ from one another. Landscape ecology looks at how this spatial structure affects organism abundance at the landscape level, as well as the behavior and functioning of the landscape as a whole. This includes studying the influence of pattern, or the internal order of a landscape, on process, or the continuous operation of functions of organisms.[11] Landscape ecology also includes geomorphology as applied to the design and architecture of landscapes.[12] Geomorphology is the study of how geological formations are responsible for the structure of a landscape.

History

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Evolution of theory

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One central landscape ecology theory originated from MacArthur & Wilson's The Theory of Island Biogeography. This work considered the biodiversity on islands as the result of competing forces of colonization from a mainland stock and stochastic extinction. The concepts of island biogeography were generalized from physical islands to abstract patches of habitat by Levins' metapopulation model (which can be applied e.g. to forest islands in the agricultural landscape[13]). This generalization spurred the growth of landscape ecology by providing conservation biologists a new tool to assess how habitat fragmentation affects population viability. Recent growth of landscape ecology owes much to the development of geographic information systems (GIS)[14] and the availability of large-extent habitat data (e.g. remotely sensed datasets).

Development as a discipline

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Landscape ecology developed in Europe from historical planning on human-dominated landscapes. Concepts from general ecology theory were integrated in North America.[when?] While general ecology theory and its sub-disciplines focused on the study of more homogenous, discrete community units organized in a hierarchical structure (typically as ecosystems, populations, species, and communities), landscape ecology built upon heterogeneity in space and time. It frequently included human-caused landscape changes in theory and application of concepts.[15]

By 1980, landscape ecology was a discrete, established discipline. It was marked by the organization of the International Association for Landscape Ecology (IALE) in 1982. Landmark book publications defined the scope and goals of the discipline, including Naveh and Lieberman[16] and Forman and Godron.[17][18] Forman[6] wrote that although study of "the ecology of spatial configuration at the human scale" was barely a decade old, there was strong potential for theory development and application of the conceptual framework.

Today, theory and application of landscape ecology continues to develop through a need for innovative applications in a changing landscape and environment. Landscape ecology relies on advanced technologies such as remote sensing, GIS, and models. There has been associated development of powerful quantitative methods to examine the interactions of patterns and processes.[5] An example would be determining the amount of carbon present in the soil based on landform over a landscape, derived from GIS maps, vegetation types, and rainfall data for a region. Remote sensing work has been used to extend landscape ecology to the field of predictive vegetation mapping, for instance by Janet Franklin.

Definitions/conceptions of landscape ecology

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Nowadays, at least six different conceptions of landscape ecology can be identified: one group tending toward the more disciplinary concept of ecology (subdiscipline of biology; in conceptions 2, 3, and 4) and another group—characterized by the interdisciplinary study of relations between human societies and their environment—inclined toward the integrated view of geography (in conceptions 1, 5, and 6):[19]

  1. Interdisciplinary analysis of subjectively defined landscape units (e.g. Neef School[20][21]): Landscapes are defined in terms of uniformity in land use. Landscape ecology explores the landscape's natural potential in terms of functional utility for human societies. To analyse this potential, it is necessary to draw on several natural sciences.
  2. Topological ecology at the landscape scale[22][23] 'Landscape' is defined as a heterogeneous land area composed of a cluster of interacting ecosystems (woods, meadows, marshes, villages, etc.) that is repeated in similar form throughout. It is explicitly stated that landscapes are areas at a kilometres wide human scale of perception, modification, etc. Landscape ecology describes and explains the landscapes' characteristic patterns of ecosystems and investigates the flux of energy, mineral nutrients, and species among their component ecosystems, providing important knowledge for addressing land-use issues.
  3. Organism-centered, multi-scale topological ecology (e.g. John A. Wiens[24][25]): Explicitly rejecting views expounded by Troll, Zonneveld, Naveh, Forman & Godron, etc., landscape and landscape ecology are defined independently of human perceptions, interests, and modifications of nature. 'Landscape' is defined – regardless of scale – as the 'template' on which spatial patterns influence ecological processes. Not humans, but rather the respective species being studied is the point of reference for what constitutes a landscape.
  4. Topological ecology at the landscape level of biological organisation (e.g. Urban et al.[26]): On the basis of ecological hierarchy theory, it is presupposed that nature is working at multiple scales and has different levels of organisation which are part of a rate-structured, nested hierarchy. Specifically, it is claimed that, above the ecosystem level, a landscape level exists which is generated and identifiable by high interaction intensity between ecosystems, a specific interaction frequency and, typically, a corresponding spatial scale. Landscape ecology is defined as ecology that focuses on the influence exerted by spatial and temporal patterns on the organisation of, and interaction among, functionally integrated multispecies ecosystems.
  5. Analysis of social-ecological systems using the natural and social sciences and humanities (e.g. Leser;[27] Naveh;[28][29] Zonneveld[30]): Landscape ecology is defined as an interdisciplinary super-science that explores the relationship between human societies and their specific environment, making use of not only various natural sciences, but also social sciences and humanities. This conception is grounded in the assumption that social systems are linked to their specific ambient ecological system in such a way that both systems together form a co-evolutionary, self-organising unity called 'landscape'. Societies' cultural, social and economic dimensions are regarded as an integral part of the global ecological hierarchy, and landscapes are claimed to be the manifest systems of the 'total human ecosystem' (Naveh) which encompasses both the physical ('geospheric') and mental ('noospheric') spheres.
  6. Ecology guided by cultural meanings of lifeworldly landscapes (frequently pursued in practice[31] but not defined, but see, e.g., Hard;[32] Trepl[19]): Landscape ecology is defined as ecology that is guided by an external aim, namely, to maintain and develop lifeworldly landscapes. It provides the ecological knowledge necessary to achieve these goals. It investigates how to sustain and develop those populations and ecosystems which (i) are the material 'vehicles' of lifeworldly, aesthetic and symbolic landscapes and, at the same time, (ii) meet societies' functional requirements, including provisioning, regulating, and supporting ecosystem services. Thus landscape ecology is concerned mainly with the populations and ecosystems which have resulted from traditional, regionally specific forms of land use.

Relationship to ecological theory

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Some research programmes of landscape ecology theory, namely those standing in the European tradition, may be slightly outside of the "classical and preferred domain of scientific disciplines" because of the large, heterogeneous areas of study. However, general ecology theory is central to landscape ecology theory in many aspects. Landscape ecology consists of four main principles: the development and dynamics of spatial heterogeneity, interactions and exchanges across heterogeneous landscapes, influences of spatial heterogeneity on biotic and abiotic processes, and the management of spatial heterogeneity. The main difference from traditional ecological studies, which frequently assume that systems are spatially homogenous, is the consideration of spatial patterns.[33]

Important terms

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Landscape ecology not only created new terms, but also incorporated existing ecological terms in new ways. Many of the terms used in landscape ecology are as interconnected and interrelated as the discipline itself.

Landscape

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Certainly, 'landscape' is a central concept in landscape ecology. It is, however, defined in quite different ways. For example:[19] Carl Troll conceives of landscape not as a mental construct but as an objectively given 'organic entity', a harmonic individuum of space.[34] Ernst Neef[20][21] defines landscapes as sections within the uninterrupted earth-wide interconnection of geofactors which are defined as such on the basis of their uniformity in terms of a specific land use, and are thus defined in an anthropocentric and relativistic way. According to Richard Forman and Michel Godron,[22] a landscape is a heterogeneous land area composed of a cluster of interacting ecosystems that is repeated in similar form throughout, whereby they list woods, meadows, marshes and villages as examples of a landscape's ecosystems, and state that a landscape is an area at least a few kilometres wide. John A. Wiens[24][25] opposes the traditional view expounded by Carl Troll, Isaak S. Zonneveld, Zev Naveh, Richard T. T. Forman/Michel Godron and others that landscapes are arenas in which humans interact with their environments on a kilometre-wide scale; instead, he defines 'landscape'—regardless of scale—as "the template on which spatial patterns influence ecological processes".[25][35] Some define 'landscape' as an area containing two or more ecosystems in close proximity.[15]

Scale and heterogeneity (incorporating composition, structure, and function)

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A main concept in landscape ecology is scale. Scale represents the real world as translated onto a map, relating distance on a map image and the corresponding distance on earth.[36] Scale is also the spatial or temporal measure of an object or a process,[33] or amount of spatial resolution.[6] Components of scale include composition, structure, and function, which are all important ecological concepts. Applied to landscape ecology, composition refers to the number of patch types (see below) represented on a landscape and their relative abundance. For example, the amount of forest or wetland, the length of forest edge, or the density of roads can be aspects of landscape composition. Structure is determined by the composition, the configuration, and the proportion of different patches across the landscape, while function refers to how each element in the landscape interacts based on its life cycle events.[33] Pattern is the term for the contents and internal order of a heterogeneous area of land.[17]

A landscape with structure and pattern implies that it has spatial heterogeneity, or the uneven distribution of objects across the landscape.[6] Heterogeneity is a key element of landscape ecology that separates this discipline from other branches of ecology. Landscape heterogeneity is able to quantify with agent-based methods as well.[37]

Patch and mosaic

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Patch, a term fundamental to landscape ecology, is defined as a relatively homogeneous area that differs from its surroundings.[6] Patches are the basic unit of the landscape that change and fluctuate, a process called patch dynamics. Patches have a definite shape and spatial configuration, and can be described compositionally by internal variables such as number of trees, number of tree species, height of trees, or other similar measurements.[6]

Matrix is the "background ecological system" of a landscape with a high degree of connectivity. Connectivity is the measure of how connected or spatially continuous a corridor, network, or matrix is.[6] For example, a forested landscape (matrix) with fewer gaps in forest cover (open patches) will have higher connectivity. Corridors have important functions as strips of a particular type of landscape differing from adjacent land on both sides.[6] A network is an interconnected system of corridors while mosaic describes the pattern of patches, corridors, and matrix that form a landscape in its entirety.[6]

Boundary and edge

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Landscape patches have a boundary between them which can be defined or fuzzy.[15] The zone composed of the edges of adjacent ecosystems is the boundary.[6] Edge means the portion of an ecosystem near its perimeter, where influences of the adjacent patches can cause an environmental difference between the interior of the patch and its edge. This edge effect includes a distinctive species composition or abundance.[6] For example, when a landscape is a mosaic of perceptibly different types, such as a forest adjacent to a grassland, the edge is the location where the two types adjoin. In a continuous landscape, such as a forest giving way to open woodland, the exact edge location is fuzzy and is sometimes determined by a local gradient exceeding a threshold, such as the point where the tree cover falls below thirty-five percent.[33]

Ecotones, ecoclines, and ecotopes

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A type of boundary is the ecotone, or the transitional zone between two communities.[12] Ecotones can arise naturally, such as a lakeshore, or can be human-created, such as a cleared agricultural field from a forest.[12] The ecotonal community retains characteristics of each bordering community and often contains species not found in the adjacent communities. Classic examples of ecotones include fencerows, forest to marshlands transitions, forest to grassland transitions, or land-water interfaces such as riparian zones in forests. Characteristics of ecotones include vegetational sharpness, physiognomic change, occurrence of a spatial community mosaic, many exotic species, ecotonal species, spatial mass effect, and species richness higher or lower than either side of the ecotone.[38]

An ecocline is another type of landscape boundary, but it is a gradual and continuous change in environmental conditions of an ecosystem or community. Ecoclines help explain the distribution and diversity of organisms within a landscape because certain organisms survive better under certain conditions, which change along the ecocline. They contain heterogeneous communities which are considered more environmentally stable than those of ecotones.[39] An ecotope is a spatial term representing the smallest ecologically distinct unit in mapping and classification of landscapes.[6] Relatively homogeneous, they are spatially explicit landscape units used to stratify landscapes into ecologically distinct features. They are useful for the measurement and mapping of landscape structure, function, and change over time, and to examine the effects of disturbance and fragmentation.

Disturbance and fragmentation

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Disturbance is an event that significantly alters the pattern of variation in the structure or function of a system. Fragmentation is the breaking up of a habitat, ecosystem, or land-use type into smaller parcels.[6] Disturbance is generally considered a natural process. Fragmentation causes land transformation, an important process in landscapes as development occurs.

An important consequence of repeated, random clearing (whether by natural disturbance or human activity) is that contiguous cover can break down into isolated patches. This happens when the area cleared exceeds a critical level, which means that landscapes exhibit two phases: connected and disconnected.[40]

Theory

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Landscape ecology theory stresses the role of human impacts on landscape structures and functions. It also proposes ways for restoring degraded landscapes.[16] Landscape ecology explicitly includes humans as entities that cause functional changes on the landscape.[15] Landscape ecology theory includes the landscape stability principle, which emphasizes the importance of landscape structural heterogeneity in developing resistance to disturbances, recovery from disturbances, and promoting total system stability.[17] This principle is a major contribution to general ecological theories which highlight the importance of relationships among the various components of the landscape.

Integrity of landscape components helps maintain resistance to external threats, including development and land transformation by human activity.[5] Analysis of land use change has included a strongly geographical approach which has led to the acceptance of the idea of multifunctional properties of landscapes.[18] There are still calls for a more unified theory of landscape ecology due to differences in professional opinion among ecologists and its interdisciplinary approach (Bastian 2001).

An important related theory is hierarchy theory, which refers to how systems of discrete functional elements operate when linked at two or more scales. For example, a forested landscape might be hierarchically composed of drainage basins, which in turn are composed of local ecosystems, which are in turn composed of individual trees and gaps.[6] Recent theoretical developments in landscape ecology have emphasized the relationship between pattern and process, as well as the effect that changes in spatial scale has on the potential to extrapolate information across scales.[33] Several studies suggest that the landscape has critical thresholds at which ecological processes will show dramatic changes, such as the complete transformation of a landscape by an invasive species due to small changes in temperature characteristics which favor the invasive's habitat requirements.[33]

Application

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Research directions

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Developments in landscape ecology illustrate the important relationships between spatial patterns and ecological processes. These developments incorporate quantitative methods that link spatial patterns and ecological processes at broad spatial and temporal scales. This linkage of time, space, and environmental change can assist managers in applying plans to solve environmental problems.[5] The increased attention in recent years on spatial dynamics has highlighted the need for new quantitative methods that can analyze patterns, determine the importance of spatially explicit processes, and develop reliable models.[33] Multivariate analysis techniques are frequently used to examine landscape level vegetation patterns. Studies use statistical techniques, such as cluster analysis, canonical correspondence analysis (CCA), or detrended correspondence analysis (DCA), for classifying vegetation. Gradient analysis is another way to determine the vegetation structure across a landscape or to help delineate critical wetland habitat for conservation or mitigation purposes (Choesin and Boerner 2002).[41]

Climate change is another major component in structuring current research in landscape ecology.[42] Ecotones, as a basic unit in landscape studies, may have significance for management under climate change scenarios, since change effects are likely to be seen at ecotones first because of the unstable nature of a fringe habitat.[38] Research in northern regions has examined landscape ecological processes, such as the accumulation of snow, melting, freeze-thaw action, percolation, soil moisture variation, and temperature regimes through long-term measurements in Norway.[43] The study analyzes gradients across space and time between ecosystems of the central high mountains to determine relationships between distribution patterns of animals in their environment. Looking at where animals live, and how vegetation shifts over time, may provide insight into changes in snow and ice over long periods of time across the landscape as a whole.

Other landscape-scale studies maintain that human impact is likely the main determinant of landscape pattern over much of the globe.[44][45] Landscapes may become substitutes for biodiversity measures because plant and animal composition differs between samples taken from sites within different landscape categories. Taxa, or different species, can "leak" from one habitat into another, which has implications for landscape ecology. As human land use practices expand and continue to increase the proportion of edges in landscapes, the effects of this leakage across edges on assemblage integrity may become more significant in conservation. This is because taxa may be conserved across landscape levels, if not at local levels.[46]

Land change modeling

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Land change modeling is an application of landscape ecology designed to predict future changes in land use. Land change models are used in urban planning, geography, GIS, and other disciplines to gain a clear understanding of the course of a landscape.[47] In recent years, much of the Earth's land cover has changed rapidly, whether from deforestation or the expansion of urban areas.[48]

Relationship to other disciplines

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Landscape ecology has been incorporated into a variety of ecological subdisciplines. For example, it is closely linked to land change science, the interdisciplinary of land use and land cover change and their effects on surrounding ecology. Another recent development has been the more explicit consideration of spatial concepts and principles applied to the study of lakes, streams, and wetlands in the field of landscape limnology. Seascape ecology is a marine and coastal application of landscape ecology.[49] In addition, landscape ecology has important links to application-oriented disciplines such as agriculture and forestry. In agriculture, landscape ecology has introduced new options for the management of environmental threats brought about by the intensification of agricultural practices. Agriculture has always been a strong human impact on ecosystems.[18]

In forestry, from structuring stands for fuelwood and timber to ordering stands across landscapes to enhance aesthetics, consumer needs have affected conservation and use of forested landscapes. Landscape forestry provides methods, concepts, and analytic procedures for landscape forestry.[50] Landscape ecology has been cited as a contributor to the development of fisheries biology as a distinct biological science discipline,[51] and is frequently incorporated in study design for wetland delineation in hydrology.[39] It has helped shape integrated landscape management.[52] Lastly, landscape ecology has been very influential for progressing sustainability science and sustainable development planning. For example, a recent study assessed sustainable urbanization across Europe using evaluation indices, country-landscapes, and landscape ecology tools and methods.[53]

Landscape ecology has also been combined with population genetics to form the field of landscape genetics, which addresses how landscape features influence the population structure and gene flow of plant and animal populations across space and time[54] and on how the quality of intervening landscape, known as "matrix", influences spatial variation.[55] After the term was coined in 2003, the field of landscape genetics had expanded to over 655 studies by 2010,[56] and continues to grow today. As genetic data has become more readily accessible, it is increasingly being used by ecologists to answer novel evolutionary and ecological questions,[57] many with regard to how landscapes effect evolutionary processes, especially in human-modified landscapes, which are experiencing biodiversity loss.[58]

See also

[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ Wu J (January 2006). "Landscape ecology, cross-disciplinarity, and sustainability science". Landscape Ecology. 21 (1): 1–4. doi:10.1007/s10980-006-7195-2. S2CID 27192835.
  2. ^ a b Wu J, Hobbs R, eds. (2007). Key Topics in Landscape Ecology. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
  3. ^ Wu J (2008). "Landscape ecology.". In Jorgensen SE (ed.). Encyclopedia of Ecology. Oxford: Elsevier.
  4. ^ Leser H, Nagel P (2001). "Landscape diversity — a holistic approach". Biodiversity. Springer. pp. 129–143. doi:10.1007/978-3-662-06071-1_9. ISBN 978-3-642-08370-9.
  5. ^ a b c d Turner MG, Gardner RH, O'Neill RV (2001). Landscape Ecology in Theory and Practice. New York, NY, USA: Springer-Verlag.
  6. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n Forman RT (1995). Land Mosaics: The Ecology of Landscapes and Regions. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.
  7. ^ Wu & Hobbs 2002
  8. ^ Bloomfield LS, McIntosh TL, Lambin EF (2020-04-01). "Habitat fragmentation, livelihood behaviors, and contact between people and nonhuman primates in Africa". Landscape Ecology. 35 (4): 985–1000. doi:10.1007/s10980-020-00995-w. hdl:2078.1/243632. ISSN 1572-9761. S2CID 214731443.
  9. ^ Bausch DG, Schwarz L (2014-07-31). "Outbreak of ebola virus disease in Guinea: where ecology meets economy". PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases. 8 (7): e3056. doi:10.1371/journal.pntd.0003056. PMC 4117598. PMID 25079231.
  10. ^ Troll C (1939). "Luftbildplan und ökologische Bodenforschung" [Aerial photography and ecological studies of the earth]. Zeitschrift der Gesellschaft für Erdkunde (in German). Berlin: 241–298.
  11. ^ Turner MG (1989). "Landscape ecology: the effect of pattern on process". Annual Review of Ecology and Systematics. 20: 171–197. doi:10.1146/annurev.es.20.110189.001131.
  12. ^ a b c Allaby M (1998). Oxford Dictionary of Ecology. New York, NY: Oxford University Press.
  13. ^ Banaszak J, ed. (2000). Ecology of Forest Islands. Bydgoszcz, Poland: Bydgoszcz University Press. p. 313.
  14. ^ Steiniger S, Hay GJ (September 2009). "Free and open source geographic information tools for landscape ecology" (PDF). Ecological Informatics. 4 (4): 183–95. doi:10.1016/j.ecoinf.2009.07.004.
  15. ^ a b c d Sanderson J, Harris LD, eds. (2000). Landscape Ecology: A Top-Down Approach. Boca Raton, Florida, USA: Lewis Publishers.
  16. ^ a b Naveh Z, Lieberman A (1984). Landscape ecology: theory and application. New York, NY, USA: Springer-Verlag.
  17. ^ a b c Forman RT, Godron M (1986). Landscape Ecology. New York, NY, USA: John Wiley and Sons, Inc.
  18. ^ a b c Ryszkowski L, ed. (2002). Landscape Ecology in Agroecosystems Management. Florida, USA: CRC Press, Boca Raton.
  19. ^ a b c Kirchhoff T, Trepl L, Vicenzotti V (February 2013). "What is landscape ecology? An analysis and evaluation of six different conceptions". Landscape Research. 38 (1): 33–51. doi:10.1080/01426397.2011.640751. S2CID 145421450. All the following quotations and descriptions come from this source.
  20. ^ a b Neef E (1967). Die theoretischen Grundlagen der Landschaftslehre [The theoretical basics of landscape science] (in German). Gotha: Haack.
  21. ^ a b Haase G (1990). "Approaches to, and methods of landscape diagnosis as a basis of landscape planning and landscape management". Ekológia. 9 (1): 31–44.
  22. ^ a b Forman RT, Godron M (November 1981). "Patches and structural components for a landscape ecology". BioScience. 31 (10): 733–40. doi:10.2307/1308780. JSTOR 1308780.
  23. ^ Forman RT, Godron M (1986). Landscape ecology. NY: Wiley.
  24. ^ a b Wiens JA, Milne BT (December 1989). "Scaling of 'landscapes' in landscape ecology, or, landscape ecology from a beetle's perspective". Landscape Ecology. 3 (2): 87–96. doi:10.1007/BF00131172. S2CID 15683804.
  25. ^ a b c Wiens JA (1999). "The science and practice of landscape ecology.". In Klopatek JM, Gardner RH (eds.). Landscape ecological analyses: Issues and applications. NY: Springer. pp. 371–383.
  26. ^ Urban DL, O'Neill RV, Shugart Jr HH (February 1987). "A hierarchical perspective can help scientists understand spatial patterns" (PDF). BioScience. 37 (2): 119–27. doi:10.2307/1310366. JSTOR 1310366.
  27. ^ Leser H (1991). Landschaftsökologie. Ansatz, Modelle, Methodik, Anwendung. Stuttgart: Ulmer.
  28. ^ Naveh Z, Lieberman AS (1984). Landscape ecology. Theory and application. NY: Springer.
  29. ^ Naveh N (2000). "What is holistic landscape ecology? A conceptual introduction". Landscape and Urban Planning. 50 (1–3): 7–26. doi:10.1016/S0169-2046(00)00077-3.
  30. ^ Zonneveld IS (1995). Land ecology: an introduction to landscape ecology as a base for land evaluation, land management and conservation. Amsterdam: SPB.
  31. ^ However, not always under the designation 'landscape ecology', but as part of landscape stewardship, landscape architecture and, first and foremost, environmental or urban and landscape planning.
  32. ^ Hard G (1973). Die Geographie. Eine wissenschaftstheoretische Einführung. Berlin: deGruyter. pp. 92–95.
  33. ^ a b c d e f g Turner MG, Gardner RH, eds. (1991). Quantitative Methods in Landscape Ecology. New York, NY, USA: Springer-Verlag.
  34. ^ Troll C (2007). "The geographic landscape and its investigation.". In Wiens JA, Moss MR, Turner MG, Mladenoff DJ (eds.). Foundation papers in landscape ecology. New York: Columbia University Press. pp. 71–101. First published as: Troll C (1950). "Die geographische Landschaft und ihre Erforschung". Studium Generale. Vol. 3. pp. 163–181. doi:10.1007/978-3-662-38240-0_20. ISBN 978-3-662-37475-7. cite book: ISBN / Date incompatibility (help)
  35. ^ Wiens JA (2005). "Toward a unified landscape ecology". In Wiens JA, Moss MR (eds.). Issues and perspectives in landscape ecology. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. pp. 365–373.
  36. ^ Malczewski J (1999). GIS and Multicriteria Decision Analysis. New York, NY, USA: John Wiley and Sons, Inc.
  37. ^ Wirth E, Szabó G, Czinkóczky A (2016-06-07). "Measure of Landscape Heterogeneity by Agent-Based Methodology". ISPRS Annals of the Photogrammetry, Remote Sensing and Spatial Information Sciences. III-8: 145–151. Bibcode:2016ISPAnIII8..145W. doi:10.5194/isprs-annals-iii-8-145-2016. ISSN 2194-9042.
  38. ^ a b Walker S, Wilson JB, Steel JB, Rapson GL, Smith B, King WM, Cottam YH (August 2003). "Properties of ecotones: evidence from five ecotones objectively determined from a coastal vegetation gradient". Journal of Vegetation Science. 14 (4): 579–90. doi:10.1111/j.1654-1103.2003.tb02185.x.
  39. ^ a b Attrill MJ, Rundle SD (December 2002). "Ecotone or ecocline: ecological boundaries in estuaries". Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science. 55 (6): 929–36. Bibcode:2002ECSS...55..929A. doi:10.1006/ecss.2002.1036.
  40. ^ Green DG, Klomp NI, Rimmington GR, Sadedin S (2006). Complexity in Landscape Ecology. Amsterdam: Springer. Archived from the original on 2008-06-19. Retrieved 2008-03-22.
  41. ^ Lyon J, Sagers CL (September 1998). "Structure of herbaceous plant assemblages in a forested riparian landscape". Plant Ecology. 138 (1): 1–6. doi:10.1023/A:1009705912710. S2CID 28628830.
  42. ^ Ochoa-Hueso R, Delgado-Baquerizo M, King PT, Benham M, Arca V, Power SA (February 2019). "Ecosystem type and resource quality are more important than global change drivers in regulating early stages of litter decomposition". Soil Biology and Biochemistry. 129: 144–152. doi:10.1016/j.soilbio.2018.11.009. hdl:10261/336676. S2CID 92606851.
  43. ^ Löffler J, Finch OD (November 2005). "Spatio-temporal gradients between high mountain ecosystems of central Norway". Arctic, Antarctic, and Alpine Research. 37 (4): 499–513. doi:10.1657/1523-0430(2005)037[0499:sgbhme]2.0.co;2. S2CID 131326887.
  44. ^ Ellis, Erle C.; Gauthier, Nicolas; Klein Goldewijk, Kees; Bliege Bird, Rebecca; Boivin, Nicole; Díaz, Sandra; Fuller, Dorian Q.; Gill, Jacquelyn L.; Kaplan, Jed O.; Kingston, Naomi; Locke, Harvey; McMichael, Crystal N. H.; Ranco, Darren; Rick, Torben C.; Shaw, M. Rebecca (2021-04-27). "People have shaped most of terrestrial nature for at least 12,000 years". Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. 118 (17): e2023483118. doi:10.1073/pnas.2023483118. ISSN 0027-8424. PMC 8092386. PMID 33875599.
  45. ^ Wilson JB, King WM (August 1995). "Human-mediated vegetation switches as processes in landscape ecology". Landscape Ecology. 10 (4): 191–6. doi:10.1007/BF00129253. S2CID 772430.
  46. ^ Dangerfield JM, Pik AJ, Britton D, Holmes A, Gillings M, Oliver IA, Briscoe D, Beattie AJ (June 2003). "Patterns of invertebrate biodiversity across a natural edge". Austral Ecology. 28 (3): 227–36. doi:10.1046/j.1442-9993.2003.01240.x.
  47. ^ National Research Council (2014). Advancing Land Change Modeling: Opportunities and Research Requirements. National Academies Press. pp. Chapter 1. doi:10.17226/18385. ISBN 978-0-309-28833-0.
  48. ^ University of Maryland. "GLCF: Global Land Cover Change". glcf.umd.edu. Archived from the original on 2019-06-09. Retrieved 2018-12-27.
  49. ^ Pittman SJ, ed. (2017). Seascape Ecology. Wiley & Sons.
  50. ^ Boyce SG (1995). Landscape Forestry. New York, NY: John Wiley and Sons, Inc.
  51. ^ Magnuson JJ (February 1991). "Fish and fisheries ecology". Ecological Applications. 1 (1): 13–26. doi:10.2307/1941844. JSTOR 1941844. PMID 27755677.
  52. ^ Sayer J (2009). "Reconciling conservation and development: are landscapes the answer?". Biotropica. 41 (6): 649–652. doi:10.1111/j.1744-7429.2009.00575.x. S2CID 85171847.
  53. ^ Shaker RR (September 2015). "The well-being of nations: an empirical assessment of sustainable urbanization for Europe". International Journal of Sustainable Development & World Ecology. 22 (5): 375–87. doi:10.1080/13504509.2015.1055524. S2CID 154904536.
  54. ^ Manel S, Schwartz MK, Luikart G, Taberlet P (April 2003). "Landscape genetics: combining landscape ecology and population genetics". Trends in Ecology & Evolution. 18 (4): 189–197. doi:10.1016/S0169-5347(03)00008-9. S2CID 2984426.
  55. ^ Storfer A, Murphy MA, Evans JS, Goldberg CS, Robinson S, Spear SF, et al. (March 2007). "Putting the "landscape" in landscape genetics". Heredity. 98 (3): 128–42. doi:10.1038/sj.hdy.6800917. PMID 17080024.
  56. ^ Storfer A, Murphy MA, Spear SF, Holderegger R, Waits LP (September 2010). "Landscape genetics: where are we now?". Molecular Ecology. 19 (17): 3496–514. doi:10.1111/j.1365-294X.2010.04691.x. PMID 20723061. S2CID 16435893.
  57. ^ Balkenhol N, Cushman S, Storfer A, Waits L (2015-11-09). Landscape Genetics: Concepts, Methods, Applications. John Wiley & Sons. ISBN 9781118525296.
  58. ^ Manel S, Holderegger R (October 2013). "Ten years of landscape genetics". Trends in Ecology & Evolution. 28 (10): 614–21. doi:10.1016/j.tree.2013.05.012. PMID 23769416.
[edit]

 

Poly-Turf was a brand of artificial turf in the early 1970s, manufactured by American Biltrite of Wellesley, Massachusetts. It was the first specifically designed for American football, with a patented layered structure which included a "shock pad" between the artificial grass and the asphalt sub-surface.[1] It used polypropylene for its artificial grass blades, rather than the nylon used in AstroTurf and 3M's Tartan Turf.[2][3][4]

History in Miami

[edit]

In the late 1960s, the natural grass surface at the Orange Bowl in Miami was constantly in poor condition,[5] primarily due to heavy usage; 34 games were scheduled there during the 1968 football season.[6]

Poly-Turf was installed at the city-owned stadium in 1970,[7] and utilized for six seasons. The stadium was used for both college and professional football, primarily by the University of Miami Hurricanes and the Miami Dolphins of the NFL. It also hosted the eponymous New Year's Day college bowl game, Super Bowl games, and high school football.

The University of Nebraska Cornhuskers won the first three Orange Bowl games played on Poly-Turf, which included two national championships. The first Super Bowl played on artificial turf was played on Poly-Turf in the Orange Bowl in January 1971, when the Baltimore Colts defeated the Dallas Cowboys 16-13 in Super Bowl V. The next Super Bowl at the stadium was the final game played on Poly-Turf in Miami; Super Bowl X in January 1976.[8] Its flaws received additional media exposure the week prior to the game,[9] and Dolphins receiver Nat Moore documented them in a local article.[10]

The longer polypropylene blades of Poly-Turf tended to mat down[11][12] and become very slick under hot & sunny conditions.[13][14][15] Other NFL owners were skeptical of the brand before the first regular season games were played in 1970.[7] The field was replaced after two seasons,[16][17] before the Dolphins' 1972 undefeated season.[18] It was replaced by another Poly-Turf surface. While it had similar problems,[19][20] it lasted longer than the first installation, and was used for four years. Over just six years, both installations deteriorated rapidly and some football players suffered an increasing number of leg and ankle injuries; some players claimed to trip over seams. Prior to the second installation in 1972, the city did not consult with the Dolphins about the replacement; Dolphins' head coach Don Shula preferred a different brand, either AstroTurf or Tartan Turf.[21] The field discolored from green to blue due to the severe UV nature of the Miami sun.[14][22]

Return to natural grass

[edit]

The city removed the Poly-Turf in 1976 and re-installed natural grass, a special type known as Prescription Athletic Turf (PAT),[23][24][25] which remained until the stadium's closure in early 2008. As late as December 1975, the city had planned to retain the Poly-Turf for the 1976 season,[23] but that decision was changed a few weeks later, prior to the Super Bowl.[8][26][27]

The Orange Bowl became the first major football venue to replace its artificial turf with natural grass, and it was the third NFL stadium to install Prescription Athletic Turf; Denver's Mile High Stadium and Washington's RFK Stadium installed PAT fields a year earlier in the spring of 1975.[24]

Other installations

[edit]

Other NFL stadiums which installed Poly-Turf included Schaefer Stadium, opened in 1971 for the New England Patriots,[11] and Tulane Stadium in New Orleans, home of the Saints, Tulane University, and the Sugar Bowl. Notable college stadiums included Legion Field in Birmingham, Alabama[28] and Alumni Stadium at Boston College.[29]

American Biltrite ceased production of Poly-Turf in 1973; 3M stopped the manufacture of its Tartan Turf in 1974, citing rising oil prices in light of the 1973 oil embargo.[4] This left AstroTurf as the only major manufacturer of artificial turf (with only minor competition along the way) until FieldTurf was introduced in the late 1990s.[30]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ U.S. Patent number 3661687, inventors Arthur F. Spinney and Lawrence J. Warnalis
  2. ^ Underwood, John (November 15, 1971). "New Slant on the Mod Sod". Sports Illustrated. p. 32. Retrieved October 29, 2014.
  3. ^ "Mod-sod revolution felt". Tuscaloosa News. Associated Press. June 30, 1970. p. 8.
  4. ^ a b Johnson, William Oscar (August 12, 1985). "The tyranny of phony fields". Sports Illustrated. p. 34. Retrieved October 29, 2014.
  5. ^ Crittenden, John (October 16, 1968). "Orange Bowl's on the beach". Miami News. p. 1D.
  6. ^ Plaisted, Ed (August 1, 1968). "Orange Bowl grass faces torture test". Miami News. p. 3D.
  7. ^ a b Petrella, Tony (August 30, 1970). "Owners dislike Poly-Turf". Palm Beach Post-Times. p. D4.
  8. ^ a b "It's back to grass for Orange Bowl after Sunday's game". Daytona Beach Morning Journal. Associated Press. January 16, 1976. p. 6B.
  9. ^ "Last-minute repairs". Palm Beach Post-Times. photo. January 17, 1976. p. D1.
  10. ^ Moore, Nat (January 15, 1976). "Dear Sirs". Palm Beach Post. p. D1.
  11. ^ a b "Scorecard: Rug". Sports Illustrated. October 18, 1971. Retrieved October 29, 2014.
  12. ^ "Lazy Miami artificial turf still laying down on job". Eugene Register-Guard. October 20, 1971. p. 3D.
  13. ^ Petrella, Tony (October 5, 1971). "Poly-Turf: a headache". Palm Beach Post. p. D1.
  14. ^ a b Petrella, Tony (October 19, 1971). "Orange Bowl's Poly-Turf: troubles and questions". Palm Beach Post. p. B5.
  15. ^ "Poly-Turf...down or up?". Palm Beach Post. wire services. October 22, 1971. p. H1.
  16. ^ "Biltrite to re-carpet Orange Bowl". Palm Beach Post. January 22, 1972. p. C4.
  17. ^ "Orange Bowl to receive better 'grass'". Palm Beach Daily News. UPI. January 23, 1972. p. 18.
  18. ^ Sun-Sentinel.com – Miami Orange Bowl – 2008
  19. ^ Nobles, Charlie (September 6, 1972). "Slippery turf infuriates Hurricanes". Miami News. p. 1D.
  20. ^ Treglown, Dick (September 26, 1972). "Orange Bowl turf: a slippery subject". Palm Beach Post. p. C1.
  21. ^ "OB Poly-Turf: A mean green". Evening Independent. St. Petersburg, Florida. Associated Press. September 26, 1972. p. 1C.
  22. ^ MiamiSouthpaw.blogspot.com – "Ghosts of Orange Bowl Poly-Turf" – 2009-08
  23. ^ a b "Orange Bowl sticks with Poly-Turf". Miami News. December 20, 1975. p. 2B.
  24. ^ a b Nobles, Charlie (January 28, 1976). "PAT can be used to soften visitors". Miami News. p. 1C.
  25. ^ Nobles, Charlie (July 31, 1976). "Dolphins find fewer bugs without rug as Vikings visit". Miami News. p. 1B.
  26. ^ Nobles, Charlie (February 10, 1976). "Orange Bowl will install grass". Miami News. p. 1C.
  27. ^ "Orange Bowl taking out Poly Turf". Lawrence Journal World. Kansas. February 14, 1976. p. 17.
  28. ^ "Poly-Turf for Legion". The Tuscaloosa News. Associated Press. May 19, 1970. p. 7. Retrieved January 20, 2014.
  29. ^ Reid, Jan (December 1979). "The real mean green". Texas Monthly. p. 153.
  30. ^ "Living with Artificial Grass" American Journal of Sports Medicine vol. 18, no. 4, 1990-07

 

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Reviews for Rock N Block - Turf N Hardscapes


Rock N Block - Turf N Hardscapes

Dawna OgleYohe

(5)

My initial contact was with Ray, whom did an excellent job giving me an estimate on what I wanted done in my small yard and walkway., the guys that came out and did the work were superior. They did an excellent job. I’m very pleased with this company. I will highly recommend them to family and friends, and I will be using them in the near future for other little projects.

Rock N Block - Turf N Hardscapes

Josh Bodell

(5)

Eric and team did an amazing job. They worked with me for months while I got HOA approval for the project. Once they began working they were great, going over everything in detail and making sure things were perfect. This project included wall repair, stucco and paint repair, paver and turf installation. Extremely satisfied with this experience.

Rock N Block - Turf N Hardscapes

John Picard

(5)

Above and beyond. I’ve got 20 years in the construction industry and these guys are top notch. Tell them what you need, they’ll work with you. Communication is clear and they want to make you feel good about the whole process: If I had to do our back yard 100 more times I’d use rock n block every time. The owner is a stand up man, his project managers, even down to his workers. All respectful, hard working people. This is a call you won’t regret making.

Rock N Block - Turf N Hardscapes

Randy Blair

(5)

I had turf and a sidewalk of pavers put down. Wes was amazing and got me all hooked up with a plan and had tons of options for me to choose from. He handled everything. After we got locked in the crew showed up a few weeks later and the went to work like animals. Those guys killed it. Everything looks amazing. I plan to call Wes back when I'm ready for my next project in the front of the yard. Thank you Wes and everyone who killed this project

Rock N Block - Turf N Hardscapes

Rob Foster

(5)

We have been working with Al and the team for many years (8) to be exact. We have had the pleasure of working with many of their clients throughout this time and we absolutely love how their clients are so pleased with the work they do and the outcome of the projects! The sales team and staff have been very supportive and professional and that’s hard to come by. We look forward to many more years of this partnership with a very positive and motivated company that’s always looking out for the best interests of the community!

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Frequently Asked Questions

Absolutely! Artificial grass is ideal for Las Vegas due to its extreme heat and water restrictions. It stays green year-round without the need for constant watering or mowing. It also holds up well against UV rays, making it a durable and eco-friendly alternative to natural grass in desert environments

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With proper installation and minimal maintenance, artificial grass in Las Vegas can last 15–20 years. The synthetic turf is designed to withstand high temperatures, intense sun exposure, and heavy foot traffic—making it a long-lasting landscaping investment for homeowners and businesses alike.
 

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Artificial grass can become warm during peak summer heat, but modern turf products often come with cooling technologies or heat-reflective infills to reduce surface temperatures. You can also cool it down quickly with a light spray of water. Most homeowners find it still comfortable enough for pets and kids with some shading or planning.

 

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Yes! Most artificial grass products are non-toxic, lead-free, and soft underfoot, making them safe for children and pets. Many Las Vegas residents choose turf specifically designed for pet areas, which includes effective drainage systems and odor-reducing infill for cleanliness and hygiene.

 

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While artificial grass requires much less upkeep than natural grass, it still benefits from occasional maintenance. Light brushing, removing debris, and rinsing with water can keep your turf clean and looking fresh. For pet areas, routine deodorizing and proper drainage ensure a clean and odor-free space.

 

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Definitely. One of the biggest advantages of installing artificial grass in Las Vegas is the significant reduction in water usage. Since there's no need for irrigation, homeowners often see a noticeable drop in their water bills—plus it supports Las Vegas’ water conservation efforts amid ongoing drought conditions.

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