The Benefits And Why Clover Went Out Of Style
* Editorial Note: LawnStarter may receive a commission if you purchase certain products mentioned in this article.
Clover hasnt always been the bane of every lawn lovers existence.
Sure, ripping it out as soon as it creeps into your perfectly manicured turf might be a good way to fit into your neighborhood nowadays. But this lawn care tidbit could surprise you: Several decades ago, killing clover was not at all in vogue. It was a standard part of grass seed mixes.
With more homeowners today avoiding the use of pesticides, its likely clovers could come back in style again as a wonderful part of your lawn. Shocked and awed? Why would anyone want to reintroduce whats considered a weed back into their lawn?
Looking to plant a clover lawn? Here are our top picks for clover seed:AdvertisementAs an Amazon Associate, LawnStarter earns from qualifying purchases.
Spray A Vinegar Solution
Create your own non-toxic weed killer with this natural home remedy.
- Mix one cup of vinegar with a cup of water and one drop of dish soap.
- Shake it up and spray it onto any patches of clover. The vinegar will dry out the clovers leaves, and the dish soap will make sure it sticks.
- You may need to spray over a series of weeks to kill off the clover completely. Unfortunately, the vinegar can damage grass, so spray the solution carefully.
Whats The Best Way To Deal With Clover Around My Property
The best way to deal with clover in your yard is proper lawn care practices and preventative maintenance. Taking care of your lawn before a problem arises is the best way to handle any potential problem.
So ensure you are keeping up with your soils pH and fertility level. Aerate your soil, water, and mow your lawn properly. All of these actions add up to one thinga healthy lawn and garden around your home that is resistant to invasion by clover and other weeds.
When it comes to your lawn, you truly get out of it whatever you put into it.
Also Check: How To Kill Wild Violet Weeds In Lawn
Use A Nitrogen Rich Fertilizer On Your Lawn
Clover preys upon lawns that are deficient in nitrogen and have low soil fertility. Using nitrogen-rich fertilizer or weed n feed products will ensure that your nitrogen levels are sufficient. The healthy and thick grass growth that results will not afford the weeds enough room to begin their hostile takeover.
Its also important to remember that higher phosphorus levels in your lawn promote clover invasion on your lawn. Keep that in mind when you go to fertilize your lawn. Because you will need adequate phosphorus levels to keep your lawn healthy, but a surplus of the nutrient can support the growth of these weeds.
Manually Removing The Clover
Similar to the best way to kill dandelions in your lawn, the most natural way to remove clover is by manually removing clumps from your lawn. The best thing to do when you see clover clumps on your lawn is to pull them up completely including the roots.
To do this, loosen the soil around the roots, grab the base of the plant, and pull gently to remove the entire clover plant. Repeat this process until you remove all the clovers from your lawn.
This is the best way to remove clover from your lawn and even though it may take longer than other methods, the efforts pay off since you are pulling the roots out the clover shouldnt grow back. As this is an exhausting process, it is important to weigh the advantages of other solutions. If you rent your home, you may want to contact your Houston Property Management company to ask for suggestions.
Don’t Miss: How To Get Rid Of Anthills On My Lawn
Reason : Clover Fertilizes Your Lawn
Clover has a symbiotic relationship with beneficial bacteria, which attach themselves to its roots. These bacteria can absorb nitrogen from the atmosphere, the main nutrient that gives grass its green color. Even better, if you have a good mix of Clover your lawn won’t need to be fertilized to look lush and green. Contrary to popular belief, Clover won’t take over your lawn, it will help your lawn. Notice how the the Microclover sections of this lawn are thick and green, while the grass only sections are brown from the Summer heat. Clover can keep your lawn looking great when other grass types gets stressed.
Poor Soil Nutrient Levels
Clover thrives in soil with poor nutrient levels, especially nitrogen. Grass needs nitrogen to be able to grow well, but clover, as mentioned previously, can obtain nitrogen from the air and essentially make its own fertilizer.
As mentioned previously, organic lawn fertilizer can help boost these nitrogen levels and encourage healthy grass growth while discouraging clover growth.
You May Like: How To Kill Ferns In My Lawn
The Cost Of Weed Control
Want professional help to get rid of weeds like clover? The cost of weed control varies depending on several factors, including the region you live in, the size of your lawn, the health of your lawn, the company youve selected and the service your lawn requires.
Yards with stressed soil and improper mowing height may have higher weed control rates than lawns with healthy soil and grass. To keep your grass and soil healthy and potentially cut lawn service costs, mow the lawn once a week and provide about one to one-and-a-half inches of water each week.
Homes in warmer climates with low irrigation during the summer months may need more water.
Why You May Want To Keep Clover In Your Lawn
You may not like the look of clover, but it can actually benefit your lawn.
- Natural Fertilizer: Clovers symbiotic relationship with beneficial bacteria allows it to absorb nitrogen from the atmosphere. Ultimately, it can make your lawn greener and more lush. However, this will keep it growing and outcompeting your grass.
- Weed Prevention: Mowing your lawn high will prevent weeds from growing, including clover. But if you like short, neat grass thats under 3 inches, letting clover flourish is a solid option. Clovers leaves cast shade over the soil, making it hard for other weeds to take root and grow and compete with your grass.
You May Like: Who Sells Mtd Riding Lawn Mowers
Should I Get Rid Of Clover In My Lawn
There are several reasons you may want to keep clover in your lawn. Due to its symbiotic relationship with bacteria, clover acts as a natural fertilizer. Clover gets its nitrogen from the air and releases it into the soil. Another benefit? Clover outcompetes other weeds. So instead of something unwanted and unsightly, you could have clover.
How To Get Rid Of White Clover
Getting rid of white clover starts with a healthy lawn. Clover will grow in areas of low nitrogen and where competition from other plants is small, so making sure that your lawn are well fertilized will not only help desirable grass and plants to grow and keep out white clover, but will also make the soil less friendly to white clover.
In flower beds, clover can be kept at bay by using a thick layer of mulch. This will keep the seeds from germinating.
If white clover is already established in your yard, controlling it can either be done through hand pulling or by using an herbicide. In either case, while killing the white clover already in your lawn is easy, you need to understand that killing white clover seeds is not. The seeds can survive high heat, low temperatures and can stay dormant for years before germinating. Whichever method you choose for getting rid of white clover, you can expect to be doing it once a year to control the white clover plants that emerge from the seeds.
Don’t Miss: Monterey Thistledown
The Ultimate Guide To Removing Clover Naturally
Has clover taken over your lawn? Does your lawn look messy and in disarray? Is the clover attracting bugs and bees to your lawn? If you answered yes to any of these questions, our guide to getting rid of clover naturally can help.
So, how do you get rid of clover naturally? You can get rid of clover naturally by manually removing the clover, using a vinegar and water solution, fertilizing your lawn, depriving it of oxygen, mowing the lawn higher, or using an organic weed killer.
In this post, we will share several solutions for how to remove the clover in your lawn naturally as well as some other less natural options.
How To Identify White Clover
White Clover is low growing, with stems that function as stolons and put out roots where the nodes touch the ground. The smooth green oval-shaped leaves often have pale or dark markings.
A common weed in Australia, White Clover can germinate in winter when many grasses are dormant.
The 15 to 20mm pom pom-like flower heads are white, with a brownish green centre and may develop a tinge of pink or cream as they age.
White Clover is hardy, tolerates close mowing and prefers clay soils, although it can grow on many different soil types and pH levels.
White Clover typically gains a foothold in lawns that are sparse and underfed, providing little competition against weeds.
Read Also: Pre Emergent Herbicide For Zoysia Grass
Cantkill Flowers For Beginners Hgtv Plants Full
Also, you will be able to kill the clovers in just a few hours. Although the appearance of oxalis reminds people of clover, it is not related.
A charm wow in complexkilt clover cottage. A natural way to thwart clover is to deprive it of sunlight and oxygen.
Best 25 easy flower bed ideas to make front yard more. A physical barrier will also help to prevent weed seeds from germinating.
Clover detak chewing gum desk chair desk furniture. A variety of propane torch tools are available that allow you to kill weeds by hitting them with very high heat.
Clovers and wildflowers in 2020 wild flowers cottage. Adios, an organic weed killer, will weaken and kill the clover in your lawn without harming any of your grass.
Creeping charlie aka ground ivy control in the lawn. Also, you will be able to kill the clovers in just a few hours.
Driveway plants flowers driveway. Although the appearance of oxalis reminds people of clover, it is not related.
Easy way to remove pet stains remove pet stains pet. And we are recommending some of the best weed killers for clover.
Grow a clover lawn clover lawn clover seed lawn. Besides, what kills clover in flower beds?
Remove Clover By Mower
If the clover is sufficiently raised from the soil and your mower is set to a very low setting, it might be possible to rip the clover out of the soil. This will be quite destructive to the grass, so be prepared to have a bare spot on your lawn. Damping the soil six hours before mowing may help the mower remove the clover as it will loosen the roots from the soil.
Remember to collect any clover clippings in your mower box so to prevent the spread of the weed to other areas of your lawn and garden.
Also Check: Lawn Mower Trade In Lowe\’s
How To Kill Clover
1. Post-emergent, lawn safe herbicides are the most effective way to kill clover. Using a liquid post emergent herbicide will kill the clover without killing your grass. Post emergent herbicides are also useful in killing other lawn weeds.
2. Pre-emergent herbicides are effective in controlling the spread of clover but it is important to realize it will not kill existing clover.
Pre-emergents prevent new clover seeds from germinating. If you already have clover in your lawn you will need to use a post-emergent herbicide in addition to a pre-emergent.
Pre-emergent herbicides are also the key to preventing other lawn weeds such as crabgrass, and dandelionsfrom taking over.
3. Maintaining a healthy lawn is the best defense against clover, or any lawn weeds. When you have bare spots in your lawn, it is the weeds that will claim the real estate. Stick to a simple lawn care program to keep your existing turf lush.
Why Is There So Much Clover In My Lawn
There are multiple reasons you could have clover in your lawn, most of which have to do with your soil condition and soil fertility.
- Wrong Soil pH: The alkaline or acidic soil of the soil is measured by its pH. This is usually between 6.0 and 7.0 for most lawns. If your lawns soil is overly acidic, grass will struggle to grow, while clover and other broadleaf weeds will thrive. Luckily, soil amendments such as lime can help to level the pH and prevent clover growth.
- Poor Nitrogen Levels: Clover is a perennial weed that thrives in low-nitrogen soils. Grass needs nitrogen from the soil to thrive, whereas clover can get its nitrogen from the air and thus its own fertilizer. You may have used too much fast-acting fertilizer, resulting in a nitrogen deficiency in your soil. While they promote quick grass growth, they might ultimately degrade the quality of your soil. You can avoid this by using organic fertilizers like manure or cornmeal.
- Compacted soil prevents your lawn from accessing the nutrients, air, and water it needs. With a core or spike aerator, you can naturally break up compaction in your lawn and help stop clover in your lawn.
Also Check: Removing Mold From Outdoor Furniture
How To Remove Clover
The most effective method of preventing clover from dominating your lawn is to maintain a dense and healthy lawn. Thick lawns are more easily able to crowd out weeds such as clover and prevent them from taking hold. .
There are also a few strategies you can try to get rid of existing clover in your lawn without using herbicides.
Feed you lawn well
Clover will flourish in lawns which have low nitrogen and fertility levels. Unfertilised grass gives clover an advantage as it can produce its own fertiliser, whereas grass cant. If there is sufficient nitrogen in your soil to keep your lawn healthy, the clover will struggle to survive. Clover will be much less of a problem if you fertilise your lawn with a good organic fertiliser during spring to ensure optimum nitrogen levels. To see Horsham Turfs range of lawn fertilisers, click here.
If youre not sure about your soils nitrogen levels, you can conduct a pH soil test to determine if nitrogen is lacking, or take a soil sample to your local lawn care provider to find out the same thing.
Mow high
It can be tempting to set your mower blades lower than normal to scalp the clover, but this will only stress your grass instead. Low-growing clover with its shallow roots has no problem being mowed short, although your grass wont love it. Mow high and leave your lawn over 3 inches tall, to give your grass the advantage. The longer grass will shade the weed and prevent it from growing.
Remove it by hand
Organic treatment
Advantage #: Frequent Mowing
Clover will thrive when you keep your lawn mown short or when you keep it long. The problem is that keeping your lawn mown short puts stress on your grass and prevents it from growing strong roots. On our blog we have talked about best mowing practices and recommend raising your mower deck and keeping your lawn a little longer to promote healthy growth. Keeping your lawn short means you mow it less often, but you create ideal conditions for clover to outperform your grass.
Read Also: Cost To Aerate And Seed Lawn
Apply Corn Gluten Meal Over Your Entire Lawn
An application of corn gluten over your lawn every year in the spring acts as a natural pre-emergent herbicide product to prevent weeds from growing in the first place. This organic alternative to caustic chemicals works by inhibiting a newly germinated seed from sprouting.
The corn meal releases organic dipeptides into the soil. These dipeptides dry out the clover weed seeds and make it harder for them to sprout after germination.
Why Do They Appear
Clover gets a bad rap. Before World War II, it was mixed in with traditional grass seed and used to supplement the healthy growth of the grass. Today it is seen as a problem. And the reason that you have so much of that problem is because of the its ability to survive while your grass turns brown.
Here are the reasons that they show up and take over your grass.
Also Check: How To Get Rid Of Wild Violets In Flower Beds
Is Clover Beneficial For Your Lawn
Although clover is a weed it has some good qualities in it which can benefit your lawn. Lets discuss these:
ADVANTAGES OF CLOVER:
- Clover weeds dont take nitrogen from the soil but absorb nitrogen from the air, and enrich the soil and become a natural fertilizer for your lawn. So you never have to fertilize clover weed.
- Clover weed can survive in sunlight or shade and need no maintenance to make your lawn look green and lush. It will stay green all summer long and make your lawn look green and lush.
- Clover has flowers that attract bees and other wasps that keep the bugs and insects away. Thus it helps in keeping the insects away.
- Growing clover in your lawn is very affordable as it doesnt need special fertilizer or chemicals to grow.
- Clover weed doesnt need any mowing as it will grow very short and spreads horizontally on the lawn.
- Clover weed also doesnt require any herbicide to protect itself as it can protect itself from other weeds.
