You may have heard the term “pick your battles”. It’s an important rule to remember. Today, we’ll talk about it with respect to your lawn’s annual clover appearance.
So you want a great, lush lawn but this pesky clover keeps showing up, and you want to get rid of it? Leave it. Until somewhat recently, clover was considered a weed and you can get rid of it with 2,4-D. But here is why you should leave it:
First, let’s talk about why it shows up. There are a few reasons clover appears in your otherwise lush lawn:
- The soil pH is out of range.
- Your soil is low on nutrients, especially nitrogen.
- Your grass has been cut too short.
- The grass hasn’t been watered enough
- The soil is compacted due to lack of organic matter.
You can test your soil’s pH yourself with a $20 test kit. Or, your local nursery may test it for less or perhaps even free. If you don’t add anything to your own to help your grass grow, your lawn is probably low on nutrients–especially nitrogen. Now here is where clover comes in to help!
Clover takes nitrogen out of the air and converts it into the soil, and it also helps attract bees, and breaks up compacted soil. It’s beneficial for your lawn, so please, leave it alone.