Clover Puts Green in St. Patrick's Day

Because St. Patrick's Day is the green holiday, it’s getting special attention on our blog.

As it turns out, one St.Paddy's Day symbol—clover—is green independent of its association with Irish leprechauns.

“As a legume, clover obtains nitrogen from the atmosphere and fixes it into the soil in organic forms for its own use as well as for the grass growing around it,” said Richard Watson, extension forage specialist with Mississippi State University, in the March 11, 2004, edition of Mississippi Agricultural News.

The little plant’s ability to harness solar energy to amend soil and feed grazing cattle makes it quite sustainable.

“Clover is an economical alternative to manufactured nitrogen-based fertilizers and provides plenty of the essential nitrogen needed for plant growth,” said Watson. “This translates into economic savings for farmers who plant clover to provide the nitrogen their pastures need rather than purchasing and applying nitrogen-based fertilizers.”

And because hydrocarbon fuels are used to make nitrogen fertilizer, clover reduces greenhouse gas emissions.

What’s more, “clover often has a higher digestibility and contains more protein than grasses, so it can improve animal performance when incorporated into pastures,” Watson said.

And to think that I grew up viewing clover as a weed! Nothing could be further from the truth.

Happy St. Patrick’s Day!

This post originally appeared on www.GreenBusinessMatters.com.