Clover Lawn

Day 106

The Daily DuBrule

Very soon I am heading out to a client's house to overseed her lawn with a mixture of low maintenance grass seed and white dutch clover. This may sound crazy to a lot of people as tons of chemicals are dumped on lawns every year to eliminated broadleaf weeds, including clover. Actually, until the early part of the 20th century, clover was considered an integral part of lawn seed mixtures. It "fixes" nitrogen, taking in nitrogen from the air and fixing it in its roots, therefore feeding the lawn. 

Paul Tukey, author of The Organic Lawn Care Manual calls clover "the best weed money can buy". Tukey quotes Dr. Milton R. Carleton in his 1957 book A New Way to Kill Weeds " I can remember the day when lawn mixtures were judged for quality by the percentage of clover seed they contained. The higher the figure, the better the mixture... I can remember the loving care which old time gardeners gave their clover lawns. The smug look on the face of the proud homeowner whose stand was the best in the neighborhood was really something to behold." 

Imagine that. Well, my client totally gets it and specifically asked that white clover be added to the seed we are using to overseed her lawn that was devastated by hurricane Irene. It stays green all summer, never needs watering, and helps to feed the other grasses in the mixture. Who could ask for more?

If you are trying to grow and organic lawn, you must own a copy of Paul's book:

The Organic Lawn Care Manual

Author: Paul Tukey

Storey Publishing, 2007