Grass Types

[AlbertaDan]

Me and the wife are having a discussion about the type of grass we have. It's about an acre. Last season there was a lot of clover in it. I prefer a green lawn. Her family says it's clover grass and there's nothing we can do.

I say clover in a lawn is a weed and there is something we can do. My idea is to aerate, fertilize, over seed. The new grass should keep out the clover Over time of course, this will happen. She thinks I'm wasting my time.

Any ideas if I'm wasting time and money or live with the clover?

 

[whistlepig]

Best way to get rid of the clover, and anything else with a broad leaf, is to use herbicide.

 

[J_J]

Anything green under my live oaks, is considered grass, much better than just plain dirt.
Yes, you can kill clover, but that is most of what I have. I have tried all the shade tolerant grasses, and they just will not grow.

 

[jhwentworth]

"I prefer a green lawn. "
Isn't your clover green? I have quite a bit of white clover in my lawn, and find that it handles heavy traffic, drought, and weeds much better than grass. Clover is often used as "green manure", or cover crop, to improve soil and reduce weeds in garden areas. It will out-compete both grass and weeds, and add nitrogen to the soil while doing that. A downside is that it's a strong draw for woodchucks and deer.

If you can't stand the looks of the stuff I'd go with the herbicide that a previous poster suggested, then till the soil and plant grass. Then mow it, put down fertilizer, deal with the weeds, control the grubs, aerate it, dethatch it, add lime, and overseed annually. Or, sit on your porch and watch your clover grow.

 

[bontai_Joe]

I know of folks that actually plant clover for the blossoms. If you are trying for a perfect carpet lawn that's almost weed free, you will need to invest a lot of time and money to get it. If having a perfect golf course type turf will make you happy, and I agree it looks great, then go for it, but I personally just can't justify the cost in time & $$ to get it. Since my water comes from a well on my property, all the chemicals I might use on the weeds, bugs, etc eventually end up in my drinking water, another reason I don't worry too much over what's growing in the lawn. I do overseed every once in a while, and spread lime when needed, but that's about the limit of my investment in the grass.