The cost of fertilizers, seed for overseeding, compost, and herbicides can really add up fast. This means that it fixes atmospheric nitrogen to fertilize itself. And even if you dont find one of those famously fortunate four-leaved friends, you can reap the benefits of a healthy, green lawn. 
A Dutch clover lawn requires little to no mowing to look tidy and presentable. You may treat the area with weed treatments to remove any existing turf or weeds on your lawn. Well explain the top eight reasons to plant a clover lawn. This gives them a chance to grow before the cold season arrives. Broadleaf herbicide will kill your existing clover and prevent germination.
If shamrock-shaped leaves and pinkish-white flowers are popping up around your lawn, chances are white Dutch clover, also known as Dutch white clover, is visiting. Main Photo Credit: Kathy Bscher | Pixabay. It is possible to grow a white clover lawn, but there are some things to consider before you launch head first into having a white clover yard.
When I leveled my 'badminton and soccer lawn' in 2016 I put down sod. If the soils pH level is too low, adding lime will help sweeten your soil and correct it. Are you thinking about checking clover out? About 60 years ago, a war began on broadleaf plants. 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. Sharapova says, Prior to World War II, lawn grass seed mixes actually contained clover seed. Sign up to get all the latest gardening tips! 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. Finding a four-leaf clover really is lucky: On average, there is only one four-leaf clover for every 10,000 clovers with three leaves. This could save you a pretty penny, and it also makes clover better for the environment than grass-only lawns. The clover will eventually fill in any spots you miss. By 1747, it was common enough that Benjamin Franklin noted red clovers value in improving pastures. But was WAY OVERKILL as far a having a low growing clover. Main photo credit: NY State IPM Program at Cornell University / Flickr / CC BY 2.0. All the other weeds I simply chopped and dropped, unless they're prickly! This website uses cookies to improve your experience. 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. This natural pre-emergent will block the annual crabgrass seeds from germinating until your clover is flourishing and filling in. The compacted area wilts on hot days. White Dutch clover stands up well to mowing, but make sure you set your mower to the highest deck setting. I did know that if I more heavily seeded my clover it would choke out weeds, so I used the 3 cups I had. Whether you prefer the look of a grass lawn and want to keep your lawn looking neat and simple or want to take landscaping to another level, Dutch clover can be a nice addition to your lawn or garden. Doesn't have to be fertilized or chemically treated This first sunflower photo you can see they're being taken over by the clover. Our pros can do it all. 4. But opting out of some of these cookies may have an effect on your browsing experience. The answer is yes (sort of). They love munching on these chunks. What is a County Extension Service and How Can it Help Me. I've learned to love caring for my lawn naturally and enjoying it daily. To learn more visit the following pages:Advertising Policy |Privacy Policy, Get My FREE Cheat-Sheet and Take the Guesswork Out of Lawn Care. 
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. 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. After this, simply enjoy your low maintenance, white clover lawn. The term white Dutch clover refers to intermediately-sized varieties of white clover, larger than wild white clover but smaller than Ladino clover. 
Ive used Espomas (Amazon link) with good results.
This makes it a strong candidate as a lawn grass alternative or as an addition to turfgrass lawns. Hi Sarah. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. I will link it to this post once completed. The most common is white clover. Clover Lawn - Why you want one & what not to do! Feeling lucky with clover (or saying good riddance! Says Sharapova, White clover can withstand foot traffic, but will do so better mixed with grass.. That way, even if one type of clover doesnt grow well in a certain area, another clover or grass variety can step in, so your lawn stays green and even. Subscribe or check back. Mix your clover seed blend with sand, sawdust, or soil. So with the many benefits of having a clover garden, why dont most homes have them? Having honey bees around is good for your garden, honey production, and the environment. White Dutch clover is an intermediately-sized variety of white clover. Songbirds love the seeds Or need an illusionist to make white Dutch clover disappear? We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. 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. At that point your new stand of clover can tolerate heavy foot traffic without issue. It depends on the climate that you live in. When planting grass seed I usually recommend using a starter fertilizer, but you can skip the fertilizer with clover. The ones who waged it: gardening and agricultural herbicide companies, the very same who create herbicides we use today. 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. This is what I planted (actually heavily overplanted - see below, lol). Otherwise, the weed treatment will prevent your clover seeds from germinating as well, so you could always consider solarizing your lawn. Yes! It can handle cold weather and drought better than most turfgrasses. Mist your lawn daily for the first two weeks. Clover chokes out weeds - check this out in the photos below If youre tired of spending loads of cash on nitrogen for your lawn, let clover do the job for you. Bin those. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. 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. Make your soil as hospitable as possible for clover. Which is good, as you'll find out below. 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). These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. 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. Backed by a total satisfaction guarantee and amazing customer support.
There are so many clover, including annual ones. Music to many lawn lovers ears: Clover will stay green all summer long.. Dutch White Clover - My lawn. Lets recap the time and money-saving benefits weve seen so far. The seeds are very small and may be hard to spread evenly. one of these free tools to quickly measure your lawn size, Grass Seed Germination Time (for most popular grasses). 
* LawnStarter participates in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program. Clover needs continual moisture to germinate, so spring is best, fall works. Cover the lawn or any intensely weedy patches for the winter. Mow your lawn close to the ground (at a blade height of 1.5-2 inches) to discourage turfgrass growth. 4. White Dutch clover is one tough ground cover. 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. All clover, including white Dutch clover, is a legume, in the same family as peas and beans. While there are certainly benefits to supporting pollinators (after all, they make all of our food possible), if you have kids you may not be keen on having them roll around in a field full of bees.
One cup is approx $35, Much fewer flowers, so better people allergic to bees. The grass becomes more disease resistant because of the health benefits of clover, Sharapova notes. 
Before you rush to the end of the rainbow, consider these downsides of our three-leaved friends. Bare lawn: If youre seeing 50 percent of your lawn not returning, its time to reseed your whole lawn.
5. Bee Turf and Easy Care Envirolawn. 
Interested in growing white Dutch clover as a ground cover? Its less winter-hardy than white Dutch clover and tends to have a shorter lifespan. Be careful not to use herbicides and weed killers, though, as many will cause damage to your clover plants. Well walk you through the benefits and drawbacks of white Dutch clover. Spread about 1/4 pound of clover seed per 1,000 square feet of lawn. sow at a slightly higher rate than the seed company recommends. When sown in between major crop plantings, they keep weeds down on farm fields for the upcoming year. They also stay greener than most plants in times of drought. The University of Minnesota says, Cover crops form a living mulch in gardens because they grow thickly among each other. 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. We had one area where we pulled out weeds, that area grows SO MUCH BETTER than the compacted area. Just like other legumes, clover takes nitrogen from the air and converts it to natural fertilizer when deposited in the ground. 
It's what I do when I'm turning a patch of weed-filled property into garden and have it done along my weedy lawn edge currently. 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. With the above information, you can start planting and soon you will enjoy the beauty of a low-maintenance and self-fertilizing Dutch white clover lawn. White Dutch clover grows well with other clover varieties. I have a very large area of sandy/rocky soil that I would like to get a clover lawn established on.