Artificial turf has evolved greatly since its introduction in the 1960s with AstroTurf. AstroTurf was so named because its first major installation was at Houston’s Astrodome stadium, which opened in 1965 with AstroTurf making up its playing surface.
While artificial turf became popular for use in sports stadiums after its introduction, early synthetic grass had drawbacks: It was made from nylon, didn’t resemble grass aside from its color, and had the potential to injure athletes. This was because there was minimal cushioning and its harsh material that could cause skin damage.
Because of these downsides, research continued to improve artificial turf. A second generation of turf was invented in 1976.
It stood upright due to a thin layer of silica sand’s inclusion on top of the material and had more durable, longer fibers and a shock-absorbing pad for cushioning. A third generation built upon these concepts, with the primary change being the infill’s replacement with either crumb rubber or a combination of silica sand and crumb rubber.
After installation at a high school in Pennsylvania in the late 1990s, the third generation of artificial turf spread around the world. Along with its increased use in sports fields, this generation of artificial turf became popular for use in residential and commercial applications.
Indeed, this turf generation is the one popular for landscaping in Arizona and beyond. Innovations in artificial grass continue to improve turf in many ways. These further advances in artificial turf technology have focused on increasing durability and improving the look and feel to be more similar to natural lawns. An increasing number of homeowners and their landscapers have embraced the improvements to turf and adopted it into projects to save water and maintenance.
In addition to saving water, artificial turf’s other environmental advantages are increasing over time. Over the last few years, methods for recycling artificial turf have expanded to further improve its carbon footprint.
With so many technological advances over time and maintenance and environmental advantages, the future for synthetic grass looks bright. When your residential and commercial landscaping customers are ready to make the switch to artificial turf, Arizona Turf Depot is ready to help you.
Visit or call Arizona Turf Depot at our West Valley showroom, 14131 N. Rio Vista Blvd., Suite 9, Peoria, AZ 85381 (623) 388-3389, or contact us at our Mesa location, 7645 E. Ray Road, Suite 101, Mesa, AZ 85212, (480) 690-5591. Our experienced team is happy to help you find the right synthetic grass for your needs.
