Living Life in Clover

The old-fashioned idiom to be "in clover" means living a carefree life of ease, comfort and prosperity."  Okay, count me in.  And everyone knows that clover of the four-leaf variety is good luck.

But we're gardeners here, so what about planting the stuff in our lawns?  Here's what Less Lawn has to say about it:

"Clover is often planted by gardeners as a soil conditioner. It grows quickly and easily, chokes out weeds and is easily 'turned in' to the beds when planting time draws near. The deep root system reduces soil compaction. Clover is also a nitrogen-fixing plant, which   enriches the soil with natural fertilizer.  Clover also works well, however, as a replacement for turf - consider the benefits: 
Low Maintenance  - Clover needs little to no watering or mowing.
No Fertilizers - Chemical fertilizers are not needed to grow clover.
Color - Clover stays green even in the driest part of summer.
Inexpensive  - It costs about $4 to cover 4000 sq. ft. of turf area.
Comfortable  - Easy to walk through or play on, although not as durable as grass."

Did you catch the bit about clover being a "nitrogen-fixing" plant?  Now I'm no botanist, as Readers here have surely noticed, so I looked it up for you and it goes like this.  Bacteria that live in nodules on the roots of clover convert nitrogen in the atmosphere into a form that's usable by plants.  There, that's as technical as you'll ever get from me.  Cool stuff, though.

And if you care about biodiversity (and who doesn't?), clover also supports more wildlife by providing nectar for those pollinating bees we all love and even attracts small, non-stinging but aphid-eating wasps.

So what's not to love?  I'll concede that the romance of running barefoot across fields of flowering clover is sometimes ruined by the screams and curses of the newly bee-stung.  But isn't that why God created gardening clogs and TEVA sandels?

Comments

[Carol]

I'd love to have a lawn with more clover in it, but I have given in to the neighborhood "peer pressure" and have just grass! Someday, maybe I'll convince everyone to convert to clover together with me.

[millionbells]

I love my clover filled back yard. I'm trying to transplant some of it into my very thin front yard.

Although, I would object to the notion that it doesn't need much mowing. Not only does my grass grow faster in amongst the clover, but the clover grows tall too! That's always the first area that needs mowing. Although, I do let it go a bit longer to put up flowers for the bees and butterflies.

[Nelumbo]

Interesting idea. In the midwest I've seen farmers plant up some clover in their fields between crops, since it adds nitrogen to the soil they can use less fertilizer with the next crop. Pretty cool trick.

[Alice]

Not sure where the writer's 'summer' is, but I'd like to see it stay green through an Australian summer with little or no water.

[knitagarden]

I planted one lb. of white clover seed into my non-lawn in early spring. My honeybees love clover and I definitely like its non-maintenance value. When you are away & can't mow the lawn, its quite nice to return to a mass of clover flowers & happy bees.

[Sparow]

Much as I love clover and agree with it as a lawn alternative, it's also worth mentioning that there are different types of clover. Often, here in the mid-atlantic, Crimson Clover is considered invasive so shouldn't be planted. I assume that Susan was probably referring to White Dutch clover which is the variety most commonly found in lawns. One thing I have discovered while lounging in patches of clover, however, is that it stains clothing much worse than grass does (and the stains are a lot harder to get out, too!)

[Becky]

note to self: get that clover growin'

[steve]

I would like to replace an acre or two of lawn in Shenandoah Valley VA with clover so we don't have to mow.

Where to buy?
How to plant?
Do we have to til?

[Brandie]

I really love the "islands" of clover in my yard and so does my dog! So, far none of my neighbors have mentioned it... but I'm sure there will be an intervention in the future. The reason: 1)they are spending a fortune on their lawns 2)it's a "gated community" so it is mowed with the same mowers (i.e. if one person has an undesirable, we all have it.)

[Rich]

Clover rocks! I love it. It looks nice, stays green, smells wonderful and is so easy to maintain. Everywhere I have thick clover, I have no REAL weeds. However, my TruGreen ChemLawn-loving neighbors aren't as fond of my clover farm, sucks to be them :) I'm trying to convert them...