When considering the wider spectrum of lawn weeds, clover tends to bring out a wide spectrum of homeowner opinions.
Once clover seeds make their way in, clover grows well in the typical lawn. In fact, most lawns are places where clover thrives. Some people enjoy clover in their lawn, as it is low maintenance and provides natural nutrients back into soil, and is a haven for pollinators, like bees.
There are advantages to having clover in your lawn, however, the tendency of clover to quickly take over your lawn and attract bees (which bother some, while being helpful pollinators all the same) leaves many homeowners wishing they could eliminate the weed. If you're trying to get rid of clover in your lawn, there are a few strategies you can pursue.
Controlling Small Patches of Clover
When patches of clover are isolated and not widespread, the easiest control method is manual removal. For small amounts of clover, removing the weed by the root and discarding the entire plant will prevent initial populations of the weed from spreading further. Be sure removed clover patches aren't tossed on your lawn, as it's possible for roots to re-establish in particularly bare patches of lawn. If small amounts of clover are removed manually, be sure to mow your lawn at the recommended height. Mowing a lawn too short allows opportunities for clover to re-establish, while maintaining a proper height allows turf to remain healthy and crowd out weeds.
Controlling Widespread Clover
If your lawn already features large amounts of clover, manual removal isn't an efficient method of control. The best defense against all weeds, including clover, is a healthy, dense turf in addition to aeration and overseeding. When a lawn is aerated, small pockets of soil are removed, which serves to loosen the soil overall. Then, the newly porous state of the lawn means that oxygen, water, nutrients, and fertilizer penetrate deeper into the topsoil, allowing grass roots to grow stronger and support healthier turf. When overseeding occurs alongside aeration, new grass seed is immediately introduced into these pockets, allowing new, healthy grass to sprout up alongside your existing grass. The result is a thicker turf with better developed roots, leaving weeds like clover with less water and nutrient availability. By increasing the density of the desired grass in your lawn, weeds are crowded out and significantly reduced. There are numerous benefits of aeration and overseeding for your lawn.
Additionally, professional weed control materials can be effective against large clover populations if applied at the right times, ideally in the spring or fall. To efficiently tackle large populations of clover, speak with your local NaturaLawn® of America trained technician and find out how your lawn may benefit from aeration and seeding or weed control applications.
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