Imagine I mentioned there are a couple of things you might do that could permanently eliminate the need to feed your lawn? Would that peak your interest? Excellent. So let me share exactly how simple it is to set your grass up so that you can retire your spreader permanently.
Fact is you can get away with that if you have white clover covering as little as five percent of your lawn. That’s because just scattered patches of clover can produce as much as two pounds of nitrogen per 1000 square feet of lawn. Which might provide half of the nitrogen your yard needs each year. And you can almost have a self sustaining lawn if you’ll but mulch the clippings and leave them to break down in your lawn too.
So it’s almost shame on you for viewing clover as just another weed. Besides it wasn’t always that way. Actually it wasn’t until late into the 20th century that lawn enthusiasts started to regard clover as a less than desirable.
In way of background clover is a legume. It takes free nitrogen from the air and stores it in its roots. Once the roots die the nitrogen is released back in to the soil. Which sounds like a virtual fertilizer factory in your yard, right?
But don’t think that’s all cover can do for you.
Clover can attract bees and parasitic wasps which are useful if you garden.
Clover can also bring a dash of green in your lawn even during periods when rain is lacking. It holds its vibrancy well even during dry spells.
The nitrogen produced by clover will not change the PH of soil like the chemically based fertilizers might. Not to mention that clover just smells better than a bag of fertilizer.
A lawn having a mix of grass and clover is also less susceptible to weeds as clover can help keep pesky weeds at bay by shading them out.
Then too clover is somewhat drought resistant. As such it can cut your lawn watering bills. It also tolerates mowing well and requires less of that compared to your cool grass varieties. So you might say it is basically a low maintenance grass alternative ideal for the lazy yardman.
Another advantage? It’s a flexible plant. You don’t need the most fertile dirt bathed in full sun to have success with clover. In that it will take to poorer soil conditions while tolerating shade too.
Of course one of those pluses might be minus for some. The bees. If you are allergic and like to go barefoot in the back yard you may end up getting stung. You can avoid that for the most part by mowing often enough to keep the clover from flowering.
Another problem some cite is it doesn’t do well in heavy traffic situations. Which is true. But when sheltered among sturdier blades of grass which do stand up well to foot traffic that is less of a problem.
If any of this has peaked your interest, you can buy bulk clover seed from your local garden center. Typically you want to distribute an ounce of seed per 1000 square feet of lawn. Plus the seeds require water to germinate. Expect germination to take about 7-10 days. With the best time to plant being during spring.
So given all these advantages, why not do your bit for the environment and throw some white clover into the mix? It’s a smart choice for those who want to water less, mow less and fertilize less while still enjoying a green lawn.
For some the brawny engines of lawn tractors are a no brainer. Others like some finesse. For them zero turn mower reviews would be more the order of the day. While electric mowers are great for those with smallish yards. You’ll find leading lawn care site MowerMania.com sheds light on all the ways to get the best looking lawn on the block.