Your Guide to Planting a Clover Lawn

clover

Are you tired of constantly mowing, fertilizing, and watering your grass lawn? Do you wish you could spend your summer weekends relaxing rather than taking care of your property? Look no further than planting a clover lawn as an alternative.

Not only does this type of lawn require less maintenance than traditional grass, but it also offers a variety of benefits for both your yard and the environment.

In this blog, we will explore why planting a clover lawn is an excellent alternative to traditional grass and provide steps on the process.

Whether you’re looking to reduce your carbon footprint, save time and money on lawn care, or want a luscious and vibrant lawn, planting a clover lawn is the way to go.

Choosing the Right Type of Clover

According to LawnLove.com, there are annual and perennial clovers. The site recommends perennial clover for homeowners wanting to transform their lawns from turfgrass to clover.

3 types of perennial clover

Did you know you can buy clover seed to overseed your lawn? You won’t need to remove all of the turfgrass but only put the clover seed over your current yard.

Read more: Create Sustainable Gardening with the Right Equipment

Here are three types of clover that you can grow in your yard:

  • White clover grows low to the ground and spreads quickly
  • Red clover grows bushier than white clover; however it adds a punch of color to your lawn
  • Strawberry clover does well near waterways and tolerates salt water well.

Benefits of planting a clover lawn

Clover is a legume that takes nitrogen from the air and transforms it in the soil through a chemical process (nitrogen fixating). You won’t need fertilizer when you plant clover because a clover lawn converts nitrogen from the air.

Plus, the nitrogen that clover takes from the atmosphere and puts in the soil benefits the turfgrass that may be mixed in with clover seed.

Learn more: Picking the Best Lawn Spreaders in 2023

Here are the many other benefits of planting a clover lawn:

  • It’s drought tolerant
  • It’s not affected by dog urine (it won’t turn brown)
  • It grows in any soil; but doesn’t do well in poor drainage areas
  • It reduces erosion
  • It stays green during the summer but doesn’t do well in sweltering temperatures
  • It doesn’t need fertilization
  • It reduces the need for regular mowing
  • It holds moisture longer
  • It can be mixed with turfgrass seed
  • It’s soft to walk on.

While there are tons of reasons why you should add clover to your lawn, there are some drawbacks:

  • Clover doesn’t hold up well with a lot of foot traffic, such as kids playing in the yard
  • Clover attracts bees; don’t plant it if you have family and friends with a bee allergy.

How to Plant a Clover Lawn

As stated above, you don’t need to remove your turfgrass before adding clover seed. To do so would be defeating the purpose because you would need to use heavy-duty glyphosate to kill off your lawn.

Instead, overseed your lawn and bare patches of turfgrass with clover seed and watch it fill in with the rest of your yard.

Preparing the soil

Mow your lawn at the lowest setting so the clover seed has room to establish. Then, use a lawn dethatcher to thin the lawn by removing excess thatch.

Seeding the area

If you’re mixing turfgrass seed and clover seed, use a broadcast fertilizer spreader to put down the clover seed over a large lawn. For hard-to-reach places, use a handheld spreader to apply clover seed.

CloverLawn.org recommends mixing sand or compost with pure clover seed to help the seed go down evenly if not combined with turfgrass.

Use a lawn roller to tamp the seed deep into the soil for better germination and root development.

Water to help with seed germination

Keep the soil moist so that the clover seed can germinate. Consider using soaker hoses or tree bubblers to help irrigate the ground where you planted clover seeds.

Once clover starts growing, you shouldn’t have to water it as you do with regular turfgrass, which needs an inch of water per week. Also, remember that clover is drought-tolerant and can go longer than turfgrass without watering.

Also, you’ll spend less time mowing a white clover lawn since it grows 2” to 8” per season. BobVila.com recommends a midseason mow to tidy up the clover and a last mow four to six weeks before the first frost to aid in winterizing your lawn.

Maintenance Tips After Planting a Clover Lawn

If you want a low-maintenance lawn where you don’t need to mow, water, or fertilize regularly during the summer, then a clover lawn is for you.

A clover lawn doesn’t need the hard-core maintenance that a regular turfgrass yard needs from the spring through fall. You’ll also be saving money because you need less fertilizer and water. Plus, you’ll use your lawn mower less often.

Here’s what you need to know to maintain your clover lawn:

Less fertilizing

Since clover is a legume rather than grass, it doesn’t need fertilizing. As stated above, clover takes nitrogen from the air and chemically converts it to improve soil quality—not only to the clover but to other nearby plants.

Less mowing

Take a break from regular mowing because you’ll only need to mow a clover lawn a few times a year. Of course, if the clover is mixed with regular turfgrass, you’ll need to cut it more often.

Plan on mowing every 4-6 weeks for a pure clover lawn. A nice change of pace compared with turfgrass.

Less watering

You won’t need your lawn sprinkler system as much during the summer when you have a clover lawn. If clover is mixed with grass, the clover grows taller than the turfgrass, shading the soil and preventing water evaporation. All of this helps turfgrass survive a drought.

Note: If your yard is pure clover and planted tightly together, it will compete for water and won’t do well when there’s a period of no rain.

How Brinly’s Lawn Care Equipment Helps You with Planting a Clover Lawn

Brinly’s Lawn and Garden products are designed with everything you need to keep your large clover lawn looking its best this growing season.

We have many other lawn and garden products to help you with creating and maintaining a beautiful property throughout the year:

  • Garden sprayers
  • Ground engaging
  • Lawn sweepers
  • Push spreaders
  • Spike and plug aerators
  • Tow spreaders
  • ZTR products.

You can buy your next Brinly lawn care and garden products online. If you have any questions about your Brinly lawn and garden product, contact our customer service today by dialing 877-728-8224 or filling out our contact form.

Sources:

BobVila.com, 11 Important Things to Know About Clover Lawns.

CloverLawn.org, Benefits of a Clover Lawn.

Ibid, How to Overseed Clover into a Lawn.

LawnLove.com, Common Types of Clover for Your Yard.

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