Are you wondering how to get rid of clover in flower beds? This handy article will give you the different methods – both chemical and natural – to help you get rid of irritating clover weeds.
When stubborn weeds invade your flower bed, they compete with flowers for nutrients and water.
What Causes Clovers in Your Lawn?
Wrong Soil pH
The best soil pH for flower beds ranges from 6.0 to 7.0. If you have acidic soil, it will be hard to grow grass and will attract clover. Fortunately, you can use soil adjustments to neutralize the pH.
Compressed Soil
Compressed soil limits your flowers from accessing the nutrients they require. You can use a core or spike aerator to break up the compactness.
Poor Nitrogen Levels
Clover does well in low nitrogen levels. Flowers and grass require nitrogen to thrive. Clover can easily get nitrogen from the air, which it uses to produce its fertilizer. If you use fast-acting fertilizers, your soil may have a nitrogen deficiency. Although they enhance rapid growth, they will eventually destroy the soil quality.
Why You Might Want to Keep Your Clover
Before we dig deep into how to get rid of clover in flower beds, let’s talk about the benefits of clover and why you might want to keep them.
Apart from being harmful, clover plants are beneficial to a garden because they enrich the soil.
Natural Fertilizer
The symbiotic relationship between clover and beneficial bacteria helps it absorb sufficient nitrogen. In the long run, it makes your lawn greener. However, there will be a competition between the clover and your flowers.
Clover Prevents Weeds
Keeping the grass high helps prevent weed growth. Mowing high helps prevent weeds since tall grass shades the soil surface and makes it hard for weeds to thrive. Clover has umbrella-like leaves that shade the soil, thus creating a hostile environment for weeds. If you like keeping your lawn short, clover will keep other weeds away.
How to Get Rid of Clover in Flower Beds
Hand Weeding
Don’t give clover a chance to grow and spread. Regular hand weeding will control clover in your flower bed over time. This is not a deep-rooted weed and can be uprooted easily. Remove all the clover plants and check keenly if there are small and young plants. Also, check the flower bed every week and ensure you remove them.
Deny it of Sunlight and Oxygen
You can eliminate clover plants by denying them sunlight and oxygen. Use plastic sheeting and lay them near the patch. Support them with rocks to ensure they don’t fly up. This method will eliminate clover in a few weeks. However, this method may kill any flower or grass that is covered the plastic.
Kill it With Corn Gluten
Corn gluten meal can prevent clover growth without destroying any nearby plants. It has organic dipeptides that dry clover seeds and prevent them from sprouting. Use about 20 pounds of corn gluten meal per 1000 sq. ft of lawn.
Landscape Fabric and Mulches
Landscape fabric permits water to penetrate, and non-organic or organic mulches help control clover in your flower bed. Clover plants have a short lifespan when covered with a thick mulch and landscape fabric that cut light to the clover. However, you should not pile too much mulch against flower stems since it can cause rot.
Post-emergent Herbicides
Post-emergent herbicides can kill clover in flower beds; however, you need to be keen to avoid harming flowers. Place thick paper bags or plastic near the flowers to protect them when spraying. Additionally, always wear protective gear when spraying.
Water Properly
Always maintain an ideal moisture level to prevent clover growth. Too-wet flower gardens usually attract weed seed germination. Although the right amount of watering depends on the flower species and soil type, water your flower bed once or twice a week.
Seed Bald Spots
After you’ve successfully eliminated patches of clover, you may have bare areas that may attract weeds. To solve this, lay down seeds right away and cover them with a thin layer of mulch. Water the seeds frequently to enhance new growth and follow the rules of fertilizing.
Killing Clover with a Vinegar Solution
You can create an effective, non-toxic weed killer for a flower bed at home to kill clover.
- Mix a cup of water with one cup of vinegar and add a drop of dish soap.
- Shake the solution and scatter it to all clover plants.
- Repeat the process for several weeks to kill the clover completely. However, be keen when spraying the solution since it can destroy your grass or flowers.
Conclusion
Clover is a perennial weed that can destroy your flower garden’s beauty if not dealt with in time.
Fortunately, there are several ways to get rid of clover in flower beds without harming your flowers or lawn. Choose a method that will keep clover away while maintaining a lush lawn.
