How To Get Rid of Clover in Lawns

White clover is a pervasive weed that grows prolifically across Canada. Clover can be undesirable for the white flowers it produces, the bees that are attracted to the flowers, its ability to stay green when the rest of the lawn turns brown, and the sporadic clumps in your lawn. Clover can be very difficult to eradicate and requires several treatments throughout the season.
We would love to help you create the lawn you desire, and the key is creating conditions that allow your grass to thrive and push out any unwanted intruders.

How To Identify Clover

White clover is sometimes mistakenly confused for black medic and oxalis or yellow clover because of similar 3-leaf formations. White clover puts out small white flower clusters and is a perennial – it’ll be back next year. In the dead heat of summer, clover will likely be taller than your dormant grass and stay green when everything else turns brown.

Advantage #1: Nitrogen

One advantage clover has over grass is the ability to produce its own nitrogen from the air. Nitrogen is an important component of any fertilizer, it’s what makes plants green. This means that if you don’t regularly fertilize, the clover can produce what it needs to thrive and your grass can’t. This is why clover stays green when the rest of your lawn is brown. The ability to produce nitrogen is why the clover will grow faster than your lawn.

Advantage #2: Frequent Mowing

Clover will thrive when you keep your lawn mown short or when you keep it long. The problem is that keeping your lawn mown short puts stress on your grass and prevents it from growing strong roots. On our blog we have talked about best mowing practices and recommend raising your mower deck and keeping your lawn a little longer to promote healthy growth. Keeping your lawn short means you mow it less often, but you create ideal conditions for clover to outperform your grass.

Advantage #3: Clover Is a Perennial

Not all weeds are perennials, but the ones that are the most difficult to eradicate often are. If you think you’ve got it beat this season, chances are good it will be back next year. Getting rid of perennial weeds requires persistence and patience for more than one growing season.

Chemical Solution

We want to help you create the look you want for your lawn. There are sprays on the market we can use to eradicate the existing clover on your lawn. Repeated applications will be necessary.

Organic Solution

Some homeowners are not comfortable with having sprays or other chemicals on their lawn, and we understand that. There are organic solutions to your clover problem, but it will require more work and a little patience. We would be happy to help you with this as well!

As mentioned, Clover grows prolifically because it has several advantages over grass, and they compete for the same turf – so to speak. The organic option is less about killing the clover and more about helping your grass outperform the clover. Clover thrives in lawns low in nitrogen because it produces its own nitrogen. Adding fertilizer and overseeding your lawn several times over the season will help your lawn compete and even the playing field. Mowing your grass high gives the grass the opportunity to grow strong healthy roots that can spread and crowd out the clover.

Whatever you decide is best for your lawn, let the experts at Nutri-Lawn Ottawa get to work on creating the lawn of your dreams. Contact Nutri-Lawn Ottawa today for a complimentary quote.