White Dutch Clover

Trifolium repens

Origin: Europe

Improvement status: Cover crop cultivar

Seeds per packet: ~3/4 pound

Germination tested 3/2024: 94%

Life cycle: Perennial

Square feet coverage: 3/4 pound could cover between 1,500 and 4,000 square feet.

Vigorous legume that is a great nitrogen-fixing cover crop. A perennial clover that spreads via stolons above ground.

White Dutch Clover is more persistent than red clovers. It tolerates foot traffic so can also be a nice grass lawn replacement or "living mulch" ground cover option between bed rows. Responds well to being mowed.

Great for feeding honey bees.

White Dutch is a short plant, only gets 6-12 inches tall, and has the greatest cold-tolerance of the clovers. Do not plant deeper than 1/4 inch. Broadcasting is fine.

Widely adapted, easy to establish. This seed is inoculated with PreVail (OMRI listed), a clay-based inoculant designed to improve early seedling vigor through increased root development and excellent nodulation, and to assist in germination. Prefers medium to heavy soils. Avoid droughty soils.

Ideal planting time is February – May and July 15 – August 30, but can also be sown into September and can also be frost-seeded.

Can also be sown into existing grass.

At EFN co-founder Dusty Hinz's SE Minnesota farm he has experimented with using White Dutch Clover and 'Tapmaster' Daikon Radish Cover Crop interplanted with his chestnut planting. Broadcasted within 2-3 feet of either side of the tree row. We have found this to work very well. Neither of these competes with the tree very much. Have done a very modest amount of weeding right at the base of the tree. Far better than whatever random weeds may come up.