Ok, I know this is a strange question

[NoClue]

Alfalfa is grass, right?

What if I seeded my lawn with alfalfa, and under normal circumstances kept it mowed like a regular lawn. Would it look OK? (Meaning, would the neighbors complain I was devaluing their property?)

[Kris in MI]

No. Alfalfa is a legume (like beans and peas). It does not 'blade' like grass, but rather grows stems. Don't know even if mowed if it would be soft and grassy like lawn.

I would go with white clover instead if there is some reason you don't want grass. It's a legume too, but invades many lawns anyway and will stay soft, green and cushy when mowed.

[Bret4207]

I doubt very much alfalfa would survive in a lawn.

[Wisconsin Ann]

Alfalfa will survive anything except being grazed down to the roots. BUT it looks horrible short.

I'd go with timothy or clover for a lawn Timothy will be a bit sparse looking, maybe, but it does mow down fairly well to a short height.

[geo in mi]

Why not just seed with regular grass? I don't understand.... Probably less cost anyway, and you would know what to expect. Going on sale now at all the BB stores, for Fall seeding.

geo

[NoClue]

I do currently seed with regular grass. That's not really the problem.

Although I use grass clipping in compost, it just seems like a terrible waste. I was just wondering if there was something of potential use that looked enough like grass to keep the wife and neigbors happy, but also be productive/useful. I have some alfalfa growing in a pot right now by accident, and was just wondering.

[Kris in MI]

If you seed in white clover and only mow once a week, it will adapt to being short and will head out (flower) a few days before it needs to be mowed. Then the honey bees will make use of it (and you can whack it off with the mower to keep it short), so it can be both pretty green lawn (3-4 days) and useful (clover for the bees 2-3 days).

[CarolynRenee]

We had several patches of "wild" white clover in the yard. Earlier this spring I decided to let it grow out, re-seed itself & take over. I've been pretty happy. And yes, when the clover "learns" that it's being cut often, the flowers seem to come out sooner & the leaves seem to grow closer to the ground.

The first cutting (after we let it grow to seed) left the lawn looking kinda "stemmy", but the other cuttings after the clover grew shorter looked fine to me.

[ksfarmer]

Fresh mown alfalfa looks like dead stubs. If kept mown too often, it will be dead stubs. You have to let it make enough growth to keep the roots/crowns alive.

[ronbre]

my sister had a field of alfalfa next door and the neighbors would mow it..eventually it died

[Callieslamb]

The stubs would not be pleasant to walk on. The bees will sting if you step on them.
Perhaps you could devote a piece of the lawn to your idea? A strip on the side and call it your honey patch?

[Danaus29]

I like my clover lawn, just don't walk through it barefoot.

[NickieL]

I say go for clover! I like to have pennyroyal in my lawn too...smells so GOOD when cutting.

[pancho]

I mow my front lawn. The rear of the house is different. I leave large patches of clover and any other grasses to grow and reseed. I also do not mow within 10 feet of my fence. That 10 feet is allowed to grow wild. In the middle and in some damp areas I leave large circles and different shapes to grow wild.

[LisaT]

We had red clover and brome grass as our grass. It was real soft when mowed. I could let it grow first part of spring and then cut and bale it. We could either do it again or let the goats out on it after the first cutting. We kept up close to the house and clothes line cut regurlaly though.


Theront

[Jalopy]

Alfalfa will die out after a while from cutting it once a month in a field rotation. And as it dies the crowns get bigger and farther apart. Probably not what you would be happy with for a lawn. Also you cannot just keep alfalfa going indefinitely by over seeding more alfalfa seed as the established crowns and roots emit a toxin into the soil that kills new seedlings. In a farming /hay scenario the land is usually rested from alfalfa every 5-6 years for one year at least to allow the toxins to leach from the soil before you reseed to alfalfa.

[Cyngbaeld]

Lost my mower in the flood. Its all wild around here. LOL