I did know that if I more heavily seeded my clover it would choke out weeds, so I used the 3 cups I had.
While it is native to the Mediterranean, it was introduced into the United States early in the colonial days. As seen in Forbes, CNBC and USA Today, LawnStarter makes it easy to schedule service with a local lawn care professional. While establishing clovers, they will need near daily waterings (like grass), but once they have taken hold, they require little watering upkeep.
LawnStarter may earn revenue from products promoted in this article. When they are grown close together, they compete for water and cannot support themselves in dry times.
Broadleaf herbicide will kill your existing clover and prevent germination.
For example, the University of Minnesota recommends spreading white clover at a rate of 0.25 1 pound of seed per 1,000 square feet.
About one pound of clover seeds are needed per 1,000 square feet of ground, and you can calculate your square footage accurately with one of these online tools. Clover seeds are small and lightweight, so it is ideal to mix them with either unfertilized soil, sand, or sawdust so you can evenly distribute them across the ground.
If you have bare patches you can seed those, although the clover won't root through lawn thatch.
But was WAY OVERKILL as far a having a low growing clover.
Theres always some bare areas with incomplete germination, and sowing a little more helps to hedge against that.
Whatever your stance is on clover, you can call a local lawn care pro to get your lawn looking perfect for you. . Have you heard of clover lawns? This will help you sow the seeds evenly.
Our pros can do it all.
Spread your seeds!
First, remove all of the grass on your current lawn to eliminate the competition. Adding fertilizer to the soil will only encourage competing weeds and grasses to grow, instead of the clover.
White Dutch clover grows in hardiness zones 4 to 9. In effect, making friends not enemies with clover means youll need less fertilizer, herbicide, and chemicals to keep disease at bay. This will kill some weeds, but the toughest can wait out anything!
Excellent. Mow your lawn close to the ground (at a blade height of 1.5-2 inches) to discourage turfgrass growth. White Dutch clover stands up well to mowing, but make sure you set your mower to the highest deck setting. Ive used Espomas (Amazon link) with good results.
What do I need to do to prepare the soil other than screen out the rocks?
Music to many lawn lovers ears: Clover will stay green all summer long.. Sprinkle the seeds on top of your loosened soil.
All Rights Reserved | Home | About, We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites. After so many requests for information, I took all my 'how to clover' posts & photos of my clover journey and put them into one Blog Post - everything in one place. Today, it grows readily from Canada to Texas, from Florida to Alaska. In todays more environmentally conscious world, some people are looking for an alternative to the traditional grass lawn and wonder if they can use white clover as a grass substitute.
Instead of a general herbicide application, youll need to spot spray or hand weed areas of your lawn that have clover., White Dutch clover seeds take about seven days to germinate (though they can take as little as two or three days in warmer weather). Clover attracts bees Honeybees are a wonderful thing to have in any garden as they pollinate the vegetables and flowers. Jeff Lowenfels, veteran Anchorage Daily News gardening columnist, notes that clover was considered so essential for lawns back in the day that it was a standard, even necessary, component in lawn seed mixes. Heres my privacy policy.
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This natural pre-emergent will block the annual crabgrass seeds from germinating until your clover is flourishing and filling in. It turns out clover does some of the weeding for you, too.
Sometimes we want to relax on our time off, not attend to lawn care maintenance.
Great question. I'd actually check the recommended seed by weight for your space / clover variety, unless you like the meadow look like I have.
Says Lowenfels, You couldnt find a lawn seed mix without it!, Grasses even return some favors to clovers, especially when it comes to a lush and beautiful lawn.
Want to give clover lawn a try?
As weve talked about, clover roots go deep.
White Dutch clover, which grows anywhere between 4-8 inches, is one of the lower-growing clover varieties. A clover lawn closely mimics a traditional lawn.
Clover lawns will only need to be trimmed a few times during the growing season, unlike the weekly mows of a grass lawn. And among white clovers, the most common is the Dutch white clover.
This means that it fixes atmospheric nitrogen to fertilize itself.
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1. Many pollinators are natural pest control, saving you even more hassle and money. There are also ecological benefits to reducing your synthetic fertilizer use. It is green and it covers the same ground area with low-growing vegetation.
White clover can be found throughout vineyards and orchards and produces pink and white flowers.However, with over 10 common clover types throughout the United States, there is no definitive answer to what is the best type.
If you dont want any insects buzzing around your lawn, you can mow your lawn once a week or when you see the clover is starting to bloom.
White Dutch clover is one tough ground cover.
This will kill it. If your lawn is 9,000 square feet, simply multiply: 1/2 pound of clover 1,000 square feet x 9,000 square feet = 4.5 pounds of white Dutch clover seed In this case, you would need 4.5 pounds of white Dutch clover to seed your entire lawn. You also can purchase a clover seed mixture with different clover varieties (some brands blend over 15 different types of clover), or one with a combination of clover and grass seed to ensure lawn coverage., Unfortunately, no. Make your soil as hospitable as possible for clover.
While seeding a lawn with clover isnt for everyone, there are some benefits, so lets dive in and learn more about this option!
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Here are the Eight Reasons to Plant a Clover Lawn, 4. I'd never get it all of a tap root, although it will be slowed down dramatically. The grass becomes more disease resistant because of the health benefits of clover, Sharapova notes.
This first sunflower photo you can see they're being taken over by the clover. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies.
When I leveled my 'badminton and soccer lawn' in 2016 I put down sod. Sign up for our newsletter. Clovers nitrogen-fixing capabilities allow it to tolerate poor soil conditions better than grasses. Remove weeds, twigs, stones, and debris from your yard.
At its maturity, Dutch white clover usually grows three to five inches tall, making it a beautiful height to view from afar on large lot areas you dont use frequently and may not want to constantly mow. Watering the seeds right after planting them will make them stick to the ground better and start the germination process.
Interested in growing white Dutch clover as a ground cover? Mist your lawn daily for the first two weeks. Third, spread the seed at about 6 to 8 ounces (170-226 g.) per 1,000 feet (305 m.). Red clover produces colorful flowers and matures at 6-24 inches tall, giving lawns a meadowy appearance.
Mowing, fertilizing, and treating weeds on your lawn by yourself can take up a lot of time and money, especially if you have a large yard. That said, many many weeds died due to a lack of sunlight! How does this help with erosion control? Any weeds with a long top root, I'd use a root pulling tool.
However, if you want to prevent bees from hanging around your lawn, then mowing once a month will help keep things look need and tidy. It isn't as tough as grass & isn't ideal for heavily used lawns. 5.
If you're considering this for next year, I'll tell you what I wish I had done last fall.
They are pre-inoculated with a beneficial bacteria (rhizobium) that increases germination rates, helps clover fix nitrogen, and supports plant growth.
When I mow it (2x so far) the chopped and dried out clover becomes crunchy dog candy.
It looked gorgeous. The answer is yes (sort of). Second, regardless of whether you remove the grass or not, rake or scratch the surface of your yard wherever youd like to grow the clover as a grass substitute.
Farmers also grow it to improve soil and reduce erosion. Grass and Clovers are Mutually Beneficial, Lawn Care for Beginners (in 13 Easy Steps), NY State IPM Program at Cornell University, Vinegar as aWeed Killer: Youre Probably Doing It Wrong, Companion Plants That Love Your Lawn (and Vice Versa), How to Lay Down Grass Sod for a Yard: 6 Steps, How to Build a Bee Lawn to Help Pollinators, Growing Your Lawn from Grass Seed: 6 Steps, Pocomos: Software Reviews, Demo, & Pricing Info.
3. Want an extra hand getting your lawn dethatched, aerated, and ready for clovers magical moment? If you have chickens, they'll be in heaven
They are one of the first plants to reemerge in the early spring and go dormant when the first frost comes in the fall (or later in some areas). Id water lightly (to prevent run-off) 2-3 times daily for the first week, then start to water less frequently and more deeply once germination occurs and those seedlings start to grow. Here are a few of the most popular options you can check out if youre shopping for Dutch White Clover seed: When buying clover seed youll want to purchase and spread a minimum of 1 pound per 1,000 square feet (use one of these free tools to quickly measure your lawn size).
Lets take a look at issues of using a white clover lawn substitute and how to replace your lawn with clover once you are aware of these issues. Feeling lucky with clover (or saying good riddance!
Microclover grows lower to the ground with smaller leaves and fewer flowers than regular white Dutch clover, making it an increasingly popular lawn addition. If the pH levels is too high, adjust the pH level by mixing peat or sawdust to the soil (you can use sulfur as well, but I find that these natural options work well and provide some nutrients to your soil at the same time.
FUN Clovers - West Coast seeds have 2 fun options blending clover, flowers, and grasses.
After this, simply enjoy your low maintenance, white clover lawn. About 60 years ago, a war began on broadleaf plants.
Mist your lawn daily for the first two weeks, keeping soil moist to ensure germination. Follow these steps to plant clover in existing lawns: Now that youve overseeded with clover, check out our article on how to maintain your lawn in Lawn Care for Beginners (in 13 Easy Steps)..
Clover needs continual moisture to germinate, so spring is best, fall works. So, are you going to put in clover or at least stop fighting it?
Do the best you can. All clover, including white Dutch clover, is a legume, in the same family as peas and beans.
loosen the soil before you broadcast the seeds (this helps those young roots penetrate if youre raking larger rocks youre probably covered).
Dutch White Clover will typically stay pretty low-growing, but if you have a different variety or simply want to provide a fresh flush of blooms for pollinators mowing it will take care of that your clover will quickly produce more blooms and fill in with fresh growth. Clovers are great for a green lawn.
I walked through clover covered with my neighbor's honey bees & bumble bees regularly when in full bloom.
Clover draws up and accumulates trace minerals.
White Dutch clover offers a cornucopia of benefits for your lawn and the environment, including: White Dutch clover, and clover in general, can be highly beneficial for your lawn, and it may be time to add clover to your turfgrass lawn or create a full clover lawn.
Especially with many pollinators losing their habitats, having a clover lawn can be a safe haven for them.
Mix your clover seed blend with sand, sawdust, or soil.
Pro Tip: Do not apply a broadleaf herbicide before or after you seed clover. Blog post on those coming this fall. Out of these cookies, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website.
A cup is about $5 from Buckerfields. They love munching on these chunks. Or need an illusionist to make white Dutch clover disappear? For my heavy soil, I'd make sure the soil was moist down deep, ideally after 2-3 days of rain, followed by a dry day.
If youre a dog owner with lawn issues, you dont have to worry about the dreaded brown patch from animal urine.
Clover does not hold up to REPEAT high traffic For the most part, white clover handles heavy foot traffic pretty well; BUT, if your yard is walked or played on frequently in the same general area (as with most grasses), a white clover yard can end up half dead and patchy.
Water, Clover needs to stay damp for proper germination and the seeds are super tiny and can dry out on hot days.
We offer instant, personalized quotes based on the size of your lawn, location, and requested service.
It pulls out easily when small. One quarter of an inch deep is plenty.
Follow my gardening and cooking adventures on FB, Low water needs once established & will stay green in drought.
So, when should you reseed?
Compacted soil leads to run-off and erosion. This is a little more seed than if youre starting from scratch, because you want your clover to replace your grass over time.
Want an added bonus? Doesn't have to be fertilized or chemically treated
This guide to watering seedlings may help (its for grass, but the same rules apply here). 1.
Hi Sarah.
Clover seeds are way cheaper than grass seeds about $1 per 1,000 square feet. If you are ok with the facts above about having a white clover lawn, you are ready to use clover as a grass substitute. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Each haircut though enriched the soil where I dropped it to rot away.
This is WITH me having pulled off the tops of the clover around the sunflowers twice weekly. Join other savvy homeowners who have already started to transform their lawn and, How (and why) to Plant a Dutch White Clover Lawn.
If you wait a month youll get some flowers and seed heads and mowing and leaving the clippings will help spread that seed around to thicken up your new field of clover.
Its often grown with the taller, bushier red clover (Trifolium pratense), which is an excellent nitrogen producer and a favorite forage and cover crop among farmers.
Adjustments may take up to 6 months to take full effect, so it is ideal to do pH testing in advance before you start planting. Follow this blog to stay tuned with what you need to keep your lawn in tip-top shape year-round. Your email address will not be published.
They also stay greener than most plants in times of drought. Sharapova says, Prior to World War II, lawn grass seed mixes actually contained clover seed.
Main Photo Credit: Kathy Bscher | Pixabay. The loosened area is healthier and doesn't wilt in drought. My plan was for the clover to get ahead of the weeds.
Fifth, do not fertilize your white clover lawn. White Dutch clover grows well with other clover varieties. Dutch clover, or Dutch white clover, is a slow-growing perennial plant that belongs to the legume family.
One cup is approx $35, Much fewer flowers, so better people allergic to bees. Alfalfa and other legume seeds also undergo this coating process. Though there is some scholarly discussion about how much coating seeds increases yield, most experts recommend purchasing inoculant-coated seeds..
Another clover variation used in lawn maintenance is micro-clover, which is a smaller version of Dutch white clover.
Is always soft underfoot (no prickly crunchy dry Aug 'grass') Clover chokes out weeds - check this out in the photos below Clover roots reach deep into the soil to draw up the water they need, which saves time and money.
Doesn't form yellow spots from dog pee
If you have young kids teach them to look before they step or sit. That will force them to reach down into the soil with deeper roots to seek out that moisture.
You can buy a soil testing kit online or at a local garden shop.
I was excited the lawn would be at least 50% destroyed.
This method will help accelerate your timeline for the clover to overtake and crowd out crabgrass. Clover is not drought tolerant over large areas Many people think that a clover lawn substitute solution is best because white clover seems to survive even the harshest drought. There are a few things you should be aware of before creating a white clover lawn. Here are some of the advantages of having a clover lawn.
I have a very large area of sandy/rocky soil that I would like to get a clover lawn established on. By the end of that summer, I hated it. This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website.
Clover lawns are: Clover lawns need less mowing and less aeration, too. My lawns first crop is dandelions, which I mow about three times. As a dense ground cover plant, clovers though they are also broad-leaved are exceptional at crowding out other broadleaf plants such as dandelions, violets, and other plants that commonly populate lawns. If youre tired of spending loads of cash on nitrogen for your lawn, let clover do the job for you.
Bare spots: If youre seeing bare or brown areas, reseed the bare spots.
With a white Dutch clover lawn, youll certainly have a higher probability of hitting the jackpot.
If you decide to mow it, it makes an amazing compost addition, Does NOT need good quality soil, it actually ADDS NUTRIENTS. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website.
These weed killers tend not to affect grasses but they kill everything else, clovers included. If youre opposed to using harsh chemicals to knock out your crabgrass and give your clover a head-start, you can try Corn Gluten Meal as an organic pre-emergent. Songbirds love the seeds [But] by the 1950s, with aggressive marketing by chemical companies of synthetic herbicides clover became identified as a weed..
Bee Turf and Easy Care Envirolawn. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. The most common is white clover. A free, fast, and easy quote is just a click or call away. Which is good, as you'll find out below.
By 1747, it was common enough that Benjamin Franklin noted red clovers value in improving pastures.
Cover the lawn or any intensely weedy patches for the winter.
Clover leaves are tough and will stand up to your pets or kids playing or lounging on your lawn. Well walk you through the benefits and drawbacks of white Dutch clover. It's almost 2' long, that's a 3/4" garden host for comparison, My 14 & 20lb dogs in the clover July 29th, before it's first mow, Me walking in the lawn/meadow Mid Sept. Approx 8" Not mowed for 5 weeks.
Its cushy to the feet and aids in both weed control and erosion control. Hi, my name is Sarah and Im the chick behind LawnChick.com. 4.
It's mostly 1" high, flowers are 2 inches high. Mix your clover seed blend with sand, sawdust, or soil.
Looking for lawn mowing, fertilization, gutter cleaning, leaf removal, yard cleanup, or something else?
Clover should be planted in the spring or summer so that it has time to establish itself before cold weather comes.
These quick spreaders cut down on herbicide use and costs, too.
Or maybe youre not quite ready for a change. Though it can tolerate the occasional heatwave, it wont thrive in a scorching desert: It grows well in temperatures ranging from 50 to 85 degrees Fahrenheit.
This way you can be sure youre ordering the right amount of seeds for your project. Because clover lawns increase aeration, they also reduce erosion. What is a County Extension Service and How Can it Help Me. It depends on the climate that you live in.
This means that it provides a constant source of fertilizer to itself and surrounding grasses and plants, reducing or eliminating the need for regular fertilization.
If you want to banish white Dutch clover from your lawn, check out our other articles, How to Get Rid of Clover Naturally and How to Get Rid of Clover Without Killing Your Grass..
The clover is up and growing now, but should I mow the clover when it gets a certain height?
Heres the short answer: It was branded a weed.
I planted to choke out weeds, having no idea how way overboard I went. It prefers cool and moist climates, but it also grows well in sunny areas or places where there is little rainfall.
Their deep decomposing roots also attract earthworms whose movement keeps the soil loose.
For years weve been told we should remove clover from our lawns, but lately quite a few lawn enthusiasts are switching to clover lawns, and it is easy to understand why.
Fourth, water deeply after seeding.
Try 2-3x daily prior to germination, 2x daily post germination, daily/deeply once they are 2 tall, and then start to decrease the frequency over the next few weeks, continuing to water deeply.
one of these free tools to quickly measure your lawn size, Grass Seed Germination Time (for most popular grasses). 4. But what happened along the way to transform clover from valiant lawn companion to enemy of the suburbs, deserving removal of root and stem?
The compacted area wilts on hot days.
It can handle cold weather and drought better than most turfgrasses. Copyright 2022. In 2018 we undertook a major retaining wall pond build which required the lawn by covered with mountains of dirt and driven on by equipment. Weekly mowing, constantly pulling weeds, it was brown and crunchy by August due to water restrictions in our partial desert climate, it had brown pee spots from my dog. Fighting hot weather to grow.
It can be done by a few dollars.
Well, great news.
Even though my sod was peeled up (yes, it peeled up even 2 years later) it left small grass tufts and roots, in some areas, none in others.
1. Just be careful to avoid bee stings and wasps.
When I have small patches I use cardboard, for big ones, construction wrap.
For a lawn you want perennial clover that comes back year after year (like grass). Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. Find me on Social: FB Grow It Cook It Group FB Epicure Biz Page Instagram, DANA KAYAL | SPICELADY@DANAKAYAL.COM | 250-681-3262 | KELOWNA, BC | NORTH AMERICA. For the next several weeks, water regularly until your white clover yard has established itself. Most experts do not recommend planting one variety of clover as a full lawn replacement.
By the end of that summer, I hated it. But opting out of some of these cookies may have an effect on your browsing experience.
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Clover also stays greener longer in times of drought.
Are you a homeowner ready to plant a clover lawn? Clover seeds can grow faster if there are no competing weeds or plant growth in the area. Micro clover plants are a smaller version of the white clover.
When creating your Dutch white clover lawn, it is best to plant the seeds during late spring or early summer. Its best to plant white Dutch clover in early spring, from mid-March to mid-April, or in late summer (about 40 days before the first frost). Says Sharapova, White clover can withstand foot traffic, but will do so better mixed with grass.. Mocha even takes her treats into the clover to eat them.
I did mix these seeds in too although I so heavily overseeded my clover the flowers didn't have a chance.
Backed by a total satisfaction guarantee and amazing customer support. Overseeding doesnt require you to start from scratch, but you have to cut and thin your lawn to allow room for clover to establish and grow. My first step was to pull off my sod & pull out my weeds! This is what I planted (actually heavily overplanted - see below, lol).
This ability also makes Dutch clover as an ideal ground cover substitute in low fertility soils. If the soils pH level is too low, adding lime will help sweeten your soil and correct it. Lawn diseases are awful, but clovers could be your answer.
Spread the seeds. Be careful not to use herbicides and weed killers, though, as many will cause damage to your clover plants. Sign up to get all the latest gardening tips! On this blog I'll share some of my best tips and tutorials to help you make your lawn the best on the block! If youre seeding with clover, use one pound of seeds per 300-600 square feet of lawn.
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