Attracting more pollinators has been my main goal for years, so I decided I wanted to Take no move forward And monitored my lawn with clover a few years ago. The idea behind it was concrete: I would read it Non-traditional lawns such as clover Requires less water and maintenance than traditional turfgrass lawns and offers greater benefits to wildlife. But I will admit that I just kind of winged it when planting my clover lawn, and it was definitely a learning experience that I would do a little differently today.
If you are interested Growing Your Own Clover Lawn, Here are the dos and don’ts I’ve learned from experience and what I think of my clover lawn after it’s planted.
Why plant clover
I’ve always thought clover lawns were attractive, but I also wanted to transition to clover because I’ve read studies that say it needs less water than turfgrass and no fertilizer at all. Clover is more shade tolerant than many types of grass and produces flowers full of pollen and nectar that attract pollinators.
But can clover lawns live up to all the hype? There was only one way to find out. I need to plant my own!
How I Planted My Clover Lawn
I didn’t do much research on clover before I researched clover varieties and calculated how many seeds I would need. I was torn between several types of clover, so I bought a large bag of Dutch white clover, as well as smaller amounts of crimson clover and red clover. The shipment arrived in late fall and, impatient as ever, I planted it right away.
While I loved the look of a pure clover lawn, I didn’t want to go through the trouble Removing my existing turfgrass And decided simply Take care of my grass with clover. Walking north to south then east to west, I sprinkled clover seeds on my grass and added extra seeds especially on patches of bare ground. After planting the seeds, I walked back and forth over the area to make sure the seeds had good contact with the soil; I then fenced off the area to reduce foot traffic and watered well.
It was then that I stopped to do a little more research and realized that I had planted the seeds in late fall when they were supposed to be planted in the spring. Big Oh! The question remains, will the seed germinate and is my effort worth it?
results
Although I planted the clover at a less than ideal time, I saw clover sprouts within days of planting. The weather soon turned cold and I wasn’t sure if the late planting would survive the winter. But when spring came, my clover came right back.
That was a few years ago now and I am still absolutely in love with my clover lawn and I have noticed that it has some major advantages over my old turfgrass.
“I only mow my lawn once in mid-summer after the flowers have faded and gone to seed, and then again a few weeks before the fall frosts.”
Lorraine Landers
Aesthetics
I love clover flowers and find that a lawn full of them appeals to my personal sensibilities. But clover leaves stay lush long through the summer, keeping my lawn green even after my grass turns yellow. I was worried my neighbors wouldn’t like the “wild” look of my lawn either, but it’s been a hit. I think, it helps me to install it Pollination garden icon In my yard to explain the clover.
insects
I knew that clover lawns attract fewer insects like grubs than grass, but I didn’t expect that my clover lawn would actually distract insects from my herb and flower beds. Since I planted clover in my lawn, Deer and Rabbit I’ve mostly left my other plants alone – maybe they’re snacking on the clover instead, as it’s known to be a tasty snack for these critters, but I haven’t noticed anything significant.
give water
The grass is thirsty, but the clover is comparatively so Drought tolerant And it doesn’t need much water. I watered my clover when it was getting established, but now I don’t and definitely notice a difference in my water bills.
mowing
One of the great advantages of having clover is that it stays below the ground and Not much pruning is required As turfgrass. I only mow my lawn once in mid-summer, when the flowers have faded and seeded, and then again a few weeks before the fall frosts.
Durability
Clover is not as resistant to foot traffic as turfgrass, but it holds pet urine better. Foot traffic might be a problem if I had planted a pure clover lawn, but, since my clover is mixed with grass, it is actually more resistant than my sole grass lawn.
hay
Since planting the clover, I definitely see more pollinators in my garden and, as someone who loves pollinators, this is a reward in itself. I’ve also noticed that my harvest of cucumbers, melons, tomatoes and peppers has improved, thanks to all the pollinator visits!
General maintenance
Despite the rough start, I have found my clover lawn to be easy to maintain. It requires less water and fertilizer and it No herbicides, weeds or pesticides requiredeither. Clover takes a while to establish, so I’ve started planting small amounts of clover seed on my lawn every 2 to 3 years to fill in the gaps and help the clover spread faster.
What would I do differently?
Despite planting the clover at the wrong time, my lawn came up well. However, if I plant clover again, I will sow the seeds in the spring. I think this would have improved the germination rate even more and reduced the amount of water I needed to supply my plants while they were establishing.
I also noticed that there was a big difference between the types of clover I planted and for my purposes, I only planted white clover Again red clover and crimson clover are beautiful plants, but they both grow tall and are Best for meadowscaping. I would also love to try my hand at growing Microcloverwhich has all the benefits of white clover, but grows underground and produces fewer flowers, which can be an advantage for people allergic to clover flowers.
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