The fenced area around the well at McKeon Farm in Ridgefield has been a bit of a wasteland for years. The Ridgefield Conservation Commission put a tarp over it last year to kill a wide variety of invasive weeds. I volunteered to seed it with white and red clover (Trifolium repens/pratense) with the hopes of creating a space for local pollinators.
Overall the tarp did a good job with only a few plants of burdock (Arctium) surviving the year-long cover. The edges not covered by the tarp are filled with emerging mugwort (Artemisia vulgaris) that will need to be kept in check or removed.
Taking a rake, I scratch up all the compacted soil to give the seeds a better chance to germinate, though if we have a few good rains that should do the trick.
Because clover seeds are so small, the best way to broadcast them over the area is to mix them with 50 pounds of white sand. The grains of sand bind to the small seeds making them easy to toss evenly over the expanse. The color of the sand also gives me a clue of where I have tossed seeds and where I have not.
In no time at all, the area is seeded and hopefully we will see a bunch of tiny clover leaves within a month or so.
