With fertilizer prices as they are I no-till drilled some red clover into a mostly grass pasture early this spring hoping to let it fix some nitrogen rather than having to supply it from the coop. This is a very nice grass paddock but it has been giving out in the middle of summer and looking like it needed more fertilizer.

I always thought of clover as an early spring, cool weather plant. But after being away for a few days and coming back to move the girls etc I was amazed at how well the spring planted clover is coming through now that the other grasses are sort of going into the summer doldrums.

Here are a couple photos from this afternoon. You can see where I drilled it and how the grass is sort of lagging in between while the clover is thriving even in the heat of August (in WI). It hasn't been near as hot as elsewhere but still grass is slowing.

If this is what red clover can typically do over the summer I am excited!  Seems to be coming into its own here in August and making good forage when I need it. I restricted them to a small section of the paddock and will see how much we can get out of it. Is there any danger of bloat from too much clover as there is from alfalfa? As far as P & K goes, maybe the manure will do most of it. I don't make hay. Plan to take some soil samples this fall.

With the clover fixing N and the Herefords fixing their P & K, I am hoping lime will be about it for added inputs but we'll see what the soil tests show over time. I've been dragging the paddocks as soon as I can after they are moved to spread the manure. In the photos you can see the drilled lines of clover.

Jim at Dawn

(Drilled red clover into grass in WI 8-2-08A_IMG2289.JPG)

(Drilled red clover into grass in WI 8-2-08B IMG_2305.JPG)

Drilled red clover into grass in WI 8-2-08A_IMG2289.JPG (120KB - 173 downloads)

Drilled red clover into grass in WI 8-2-08B IMG_2305.JPG (124KB - 175 downloads)