Dean Giggins

Here’s an honest, side-by-side comparison across maintenance, appearance, durability, environmental impact and cost – so you can decide which one actually suits your property.

Paving slabs crack, sink, grow moss and need re-pointing every few years. Here are seven surfaces Essex homeowners and businesses use instead.

Artificial grass doesn’t need mowing, watering or feeding – but a few minutes of upkeep now and then keeps it draining properly and looking as good as the day it was installed.

Why natural lawns give up under trees, fences and north-facing walls – and what actually needs to happen in the ground for an artificial lawn to stay green, dry and usable in Essex’s darkest gardens.

What actually changes when a home goes to market with a tired lawn versus a properly installed artificial one – and where the real return sits, once the guesswork is stripped out.

Why weeds still turn up on a lawn that isn’t growing anything, which treatments are actually safe to use, and how a correctly installed lawn avoids the problem almost entirely.

What actually determines how many years you get out of a lawn, why two identical-looking installations can age completely differently, and what to check before you commit.

Why a natural lawn struggles most exactly when you need the garden to still work, and what keeps an artificial one green, dry and usable through the wettest months of the year.

How to plan, choose and install artificial grass around a pool so it stays safe, dry underfoot, and looking its best – without the mud, mowing or dead patches natural grass leaves behind.