Everything you need to know about White Clover:

Not all weeds are nuisances.  White Clover has benefits for the turf but is also very unwanted when the goal is a thick lush green lawn.  This weedy plant does provide a great source of nitrogen, but can be controlled if your goal it a picture perfect lawn.  Did you know long ago the white clover was added to grass seed mixes to help with germination rates, since it added nitrogen to the soil. We are here to teach you about White Clover and how we can help!

Where can you find White Clover:

White Clover is a perennial broad leaf weed that can be found throughout the entire United States.  The plant can germinate at any time of the season and can tolerate many different condition which makes it tougher to control.  It can tolerate both warm and cool season grasses.

Growing Season for White Clover:

The growing season is the entire season…  It can germinate at any time of the warm months and will last the entire season if left untreated.  Even if you mow the lawn short, the plant will grow back and you will see the whitish pink flower it produces throughout the lawn.

How to treat White Clover:

There are 2 ways to combat this weed.  A solid lawn care program should address both cultural and chemical routes.  Clover loves areas that have low nitrogren content.  This is because it can produce its own.  So areas of the lawn that bare or thinning is perfect breading grounds for it to spread rapidly.  The answer is to fertilize the lawn to add nitrogen AND aerate and overseed to establish a thick bed of grass to out compete the Clover infestation. 

The second way to combat clover is to apply  selective herbicides to the lawn. There are 2 pieces to this avenue…  killing established White Clover plant is not difficult, but killing the seed is very difficult.  To control an exist weed, a pre-emergent is needed to help prevent it from ever germinating.  If some the the clover weeds break the pre-emergent barrier, then a post emergent application is necessary.  Using a product like Quinclorac would help get rid of the weed once it has germinated.  If you are attempting to kill the plant down to the seed you will need to use a non selective herbicide that contains the active ingredient glysophate.

Need some help?

If you need any help with fertilization and weed control, feel free to give our office a call at 317-748-3153.  We service Indianapolis, Broad Ripple, Meridian Kessler, Westfield and Fishers.  We know sometimes it is best to bring in the professionals to take care of the dirty work.  If you wish do request a free estimate via our website, click here.  If you are looking for another great source, we recommend the Purdue Turf Science Program.  Check it out here.