How to Plant a Clover Lawn in 7 Easy Steps
Alternative lawns are all the rage! They’re great for lawn lovers who don’t want to have to fertilize, water, and mow grass so often. Clover lawns are superb, as they feed pollinators, are drought-tolerant, and fix nitrogen in the soil. Learn how to plant one yourself with these seven easy steps.
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Why deal with a high-needs lawn when you can cultivate a low-maintenance clover lawn? You’ll have less watering, fertilizing, and mowing to do, which means more time for gardening and cultivating. Do the things you love in the yard and ditch the tasks you don’t like to do.
Clovers work well for lawns because they’re tough, drought-tolerant, and perennial. Some stay low to the ground and require minimal mowing, while others are vigorous and spread freely in large areas. Many have white, pink, or yellow flowers that lure bumblebees into the garden.
Converting an old lawn to a clover one is easy with the right steps and tools. Grab a rake, some soil, and clover seeds, and get ready for planting! These seven steps will guide you through the process.
Step 1: Choose a Clover
Clovers are plants in the genus Trifolium. They have free-rooting stems, bloom heads with multiple blossoms, and compound leaves. Many are native to the U.S., while others are introduced weeds that have naturalized in the country.
The best clovers for lawns are free-spreading varieties with rooting stems. They’ll form vast stands of foliage that create a lawn-like appearance after you mow them. Try a native variety of Trifolium that grows in your region, or opt for one of the many commonly cultivated types.
White, red, and micro clover are viable options that are readily available. Avoid planting clovers that are invasive in your state, as it’s illegal to grow noxious weeds. They’ll spread into local ecosystems and prevent them from flourishing. Choose a native species for your clover lawn instead.
Trifolium isn’t the only genus of lawn alternative plants! Consider the similar-looking wood sorrels in the genus Oxalis. Many gardeners consider them weeds, though they’re hardy plants, and many are native to the U.S. Both wood sorrels and clovers are excellent drought-tolerant options for an alternative lawn.
Step 2: Remove the Old Lawn
This is the most labor-intensive step in planting a clover lawn. You’ll need to remove the old grasses to ensure they don’t snuff out your seedlings. Young seedlings need an open site with access to sunlight and moisture.
Instead of digging the grass out, simply snuff it out with cardboard! Lay cardboard pieces in a patchwork design until you cover the entire lawn. Then, put compost or dirt on top.
The cardboard will prevent the grasses and weeds from photosynthesizing, causing them to turn yellow, wither, and die. The cardboard eventually decomposes, after which the clover roots can penetrate through to the soil below.
You may also use a clear, opaque, or fabric tarp to remove the lawn. Simply lay down the tarp and weigh down its edges with bricks or rocks. Use multiple tarps, if necessary, to cover the entire site. Leave it for two to four weeks until the grass dies underneath, then remove it for planting.
Step 3: Prepare Soil for Planting
Whether you used a tarp or cardboard to kill your lawn, preparing the soil for planting is an important next step. Evening the soil ensures a level surface for the clover lawn seeds to sprout on. Old, poor soils may need amending to ensure healthy, vigorous clover growth later on.
There are a few easy options for leveling the clover lawn before planting. You may use a rake for small and medium-sized yards. Simply drag it along the soil, ensuring there aren’t any hills or holes. If the site has poor soil, consider amending it with compost or leaf mold to boost future growth.
You may also use a lawn leveling rake! This tool does the hard work so you don’t have to. All you have to do is drag it along the ground. The square shape of the rake evens the soil, filling holes and removing hills.
Step 4: Sow Clover Seeds
Because of clover’s popularity in recent years, there are many seed mixes available for alternative lawns. Native clovers are more difficult to track down. You’ll need to look at local native plant nurseries to find seeds or starts.
When sowing your clover lawn, distribute the seeds evenly throughout the site. You don’t want dense, overcrowded seedlings or bare patches when the seeds sprout. Use a hand-powered spreader or a broadcast spreader with wheels.
How many seeds to spread depends on the clover’s variety and the size of the yard. White clover, for example, has a seeding rate of four pounds of seeds per acre. Look for the seeding rates for your variety of clover, then sow the proper amount.
Step 5: Care for Seedlings
Clover seeds benefit from cool temperatures and moist soil while they germinate. Ensure the soil stays moist, but not soggy, by watering regularly. Set up a sprinkler system, or connect a hose to a watering tool.
Weeding is an important step early on in the germination process. Pesky weed seedlings crowd out your clover, causing poor growth and stealing its nutrients. Pull them as soon as you notice them to prevent the weeds from spreading.
When weeding and watering, avoid walking on the clover lawn. Foot traffic can tamp it down and snap tender stems. Walk around the perimeter, or consider putting stepping stones in large lawns to make a pathway.
Step 6: Mow the Clover Lawn
The first mow is the most crucial mow the clover will receive! It sets its future height, and it creates a level surface to walk on.
Wait to mow for a month or more until the seedlings are four inches or taller. Some species will stay smaller than three to four inches and won’t require mowing. Others will need repeat mowings once or twice a year to keep them even and dense.
Avoid mowing too low initially. Set the mower to three and a half inches, wait a week or two, and then mow again at a lower height. Do so when the weather is mild in fall or spring, and avoid mowing in the middle of summer.
Step 7: Aftercare
Clover lawns need fewer resources than grasses to thrive, but they’re not indestructible! They’ll need some water to stay green during the summer, especially if you plan on mowing frequently. Water them once a week or two during the growing season.
When watering, water deeply and infrequently. Instead of watering daily for fifteen minutes, water once a week for an hour. Long, infrequent watering encourages deep penetrating roots that are resilient amidst droughts and high temperatures.
Clovers fix nitrogen from the soil and rarely require extra fertilizer. If you are fertilizing, use one low in nitrogen to avoid overloading the soil with nutrients.
Whether a dog pees on the site or a mower pulls some plants up, parts of the lawn may die over time. Reseed the area in fall or spring to encourage a thick, dense lawn for the future.
