2026 June 7 Yellow and White Sweet Clover Control
I have tremendous respect for Yellow Sweet Clover and White Sweet Clover ( Melilotus officinalis and Melilotus alba ) which I first met in 2020 after a new street tree was planted in my tree lawn by the city. Even though they are not native, I typically leave clovers that appear in my garden. They usually stay low to the ground, have pretty blooms for pollinators and they fix nitrogen in the soil. I see them as a living mulch. Even when they are cut back, they continue to help soil structure and prevent erosion. The Yellow Sweet Clover is front and center in this photo. You can see the common Red (pink) Clover Trifolium pratense is much shorter in the foreground and background. This is likely a first year plant that will not bloom until next year. I’m going to cut it back to the ground both this year and next year to prevent blooming and seed production. At first, I left the plants be, but their growth habit was much different than the white and pink clovers I was used to. The ste...
