Monoculture grass lawns ,to me are boring and sterile. Embrace the lawn weeds. They do better in the summer when the grass dies. However, grass is a nice backdrop for the lawn weeds so you dont want to lose it entirely
Yes. This clover doesn't destroy grass but it does take advantage of poor management of grass which is actually a high maintenance plant. To grow grass well, you need to make sure it has good drainage, fertiliser, regular scarifying in spring and autumn to remove thatch and debris, correct cutting - not too short so there's enough leaf to feed the roots and the correct variety of grass for your lawn and that depends on the amount of shade and the amount of wear and tear from people and pets playing on it.
Vendée - 20kms from Atlantic coast.
"The price good men (and women) pay for indifference to public affairs is to be ruled by evil men (and women)."
Thank you all - your advice is absolutely brilliant! I'll try an initial grass feed to support more grass growth and then take your advice with more regular medium length cuts to blend the grass and clover together.
I'll provide a picture of the current state of the grass for interest / context tomorrow.
Isn't amazing how farmers have sown clover to fertilise and improve the soil naturally for hundreds of years but the RHS advise drenching the soil in chemicals to get rid of it by doing exactly what the clover is already doing naturally and for free. Hopefully in the not to distant future gardeners will look back on the grass-only lawn culture as a mistake of the past.
If you can keep your head, while those around you are losing theirs, you may not have grasped the seriousness of the situation.
@Mrs-R3- when I moved here there was nothing much apart from poor grass and a fenced, paved area. I cut the grass one day in my sandals, and I disturbed a bee on the clover. He probably came off worst though, poor wee thing! The big advantage of clover is that, if you follow the advice re grass cutting, the two can live happily side by side. I actually reintroduced some, because the creation of the garden here meant that I lost quite a lot of the grass.
Perhaps you could keep a section which is allowed to do it's own thing @ah606. That way, you can have a nicely maintained grassy area to please you, and a nice little area for the bees and wildflowers. Everyone's a winner as Mr Errol Brown once sang...
It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
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I'll provide a picture of the current state of the grass for interest / context tomorrow.
One clover, and a bee,
And revery.
The revery alone will do
If bees are few.
The big advantage of clover is that, if you follow the advice re grass cutting, the two can live happily side by side. I actually reintroduced some, because the creation of the garden here meant that I lost quite a lot of the grass.
Perhaps you could keep a section which is allowed to do it's own thing @ah606. That way, you can have a nicely maintained grassy area to please you, and a nice little area for the bees and wildflowers.
Everyone's a winner as Mr Errol Brown once sang...
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...