When unwanted clover grows rampant in your own lawn, the only thing that usually helps is a combination of fertilizing and scarifying. But you can also turn the tables and instead of relying on a flagging lawn, you can opt for the lush green of an area planted with clover.

Clover is a robust lawn substitute

Reasons for the clover as a lawn substitute

Sometimes even hardy grass varieties have a hard time asserting themselves in a given densely grown area. For example, the following reasons can be responsible for this:

  • nitrogen-poor soil
  • too much shade
  • waterlogging in the soil

Clover does not tolerate waterlogging very well, but it can store its own nitrogen from the atmosphere via the nodule bacteria on the roots. In addition, as a lawn substitute, clover can usually be kept short with much less maintenance than most types of grass. Another ecologically valuable fact: the spherical flowers of red and white clover are a valuable source of nectar for butterflies, bumblebees and bees.

Sow the clover properly in the desired area and care for it

Before sowing, the intended area should be leveled as well as possible. Resist the temptation to simply spread the clover seed by hand, however, as this will almost always produce very inconsistent results. It is better to mix the seeds with a finely crumbly sowing soil and spread it evenly over the prepared surface. The seeds should be covered with no more than 1 to 2 cm of soil and kept evenly moist during the germination phase. It is also important that you do not enter the area before the plants have developed sufficiently vigorously.

Tips for a healthy clover lawn

So that you get the most attractive possible lawn replacement, there are seeds of clover varieties that are cultivated with particularly small leaves in specialist shops. Clover and turf seeds can also be mixed together to create a resilient clover turf. Since the Klee is relatively hard-wearing, but also somewhat sensitive when subjected to heavy use, paths made of stepping stones or flagstones should help to protect the Klee area.

tips

Red and white clover are hardy and perennial, but rather short-lived. Therefore, the plants should be able to multiply as regularly as possible by self-sowing and not be kept too short. As a rule, however, most clover species also reproduce vegetatively via offshoots.

Category:

Herbs