Crimson Clover Seed
Find an ideal forage or cover crop mix with the hardy, annual diogene crimson clover seed.
A crimson clover cover crop can make all the difference.
Choosing a cover crop or forage crop for your land is essential to maintaining the health of your soil, your livestock, and your crops—playing a key role in slowing erosion, improving soil health and fertility, controlling and smothering weeds and pests, enriching your crops, and providing nutrition for your livestock. There is no shortage of options for cover and forage crops, each with their own unique advantages.
The right crop substantially improves the health and sustainability of your farming operations.
Crimson clover cover crop provides substantial benefits for crops as well as livestock.
An annual clover, crimson clover makes an excellent cover crop and forage crop. As a forage crop, crimson clover is excellent for hay, grazing, and green manure. Crimson clover cover crop performs best as a winter or spring crop during barley to early wheat planting dates, especially when mixed with a small grain or annual ryegrass.
Crimson Clover Benefits At a Glance
Crimson clover, also known as Italian clover, is an upright annual herb native to Europe with rich red or crimson flowers and slightly hairy leaves and leaflets. Crimson clover has found use across the United States, especially in the South, as a nitrogen-fixing forage or cover crop.
Grows Faster than
Other Clovers
With taller flower stems, larger seed than other clovers, and more rapid and upright growth, crimson clover blooms early and grows adequately in acid soils but adapts well to other soils as well—even dry and less fertile ones.
Attractive to Livestock
and Pollinators
Due to its high protein content, crimson clover is palatable to livestock as a forage crop. A crimson clover cover crop is a good nitrogen producer, and its distinctive red flowers are especially attractive to bees and other pollinators.
Tolerant
and Hardy
Crimson clover cover crop withstands front and fungus infections and has a higher-than-average shade tolerance, making it an excellent choice for interseeding in corn.
Bountiful Forage
Production
As a forage crop, crimson clover production usually achieves 10-14 tons per acre of fresh product, with a seeding rate of 15-25 lbs per acre. Planting crimson clover seed with other legumes or grasses leads to even further increases in quality and quantity.
Read on to learn more about crimson clover benefits as a forage and cover crop:
Establishment of crimson clover seed
The best seeding dates for crimson clover are:
- Late summer
- Fall (before mid wheat dates)
- Early spring
The recommended seeding rate for crimson clover is 15-25 pounds per acre at a depth of ¼” to ¾” in fine, firm seedbed.
Sowing Crimson Clover
Crimson clover is best sown in autumn or spring with 15-25 lbs per acre. Because of its larger seed, it is not as well adapted to practices like frost seeding compared to other clovers.
Crimson clover cover crop is best used as a winter or spring annual in zones 6 and higher. In zones 4 and 5, winter survival of crimson clover can be improved to about 80% reliable when mixed with other species.
When used as a cover crop, crimson clover can be terminated before summer annual planting with herbicides or moldboard plowing.
Feeding Your Farm’s Future
At King’s AgriSeed, our mission is to ensure that your forage and cropping systems are balanced and profitable to ensure the long-term health of your soil, your crops, your livestock, and your business.
Our dealer network, stretching from Virginia to Maine, and our vast product line of improved varieties and hybrids empower you to choose just the right cover and forage crops.
Talk to us to find out if crimson clover is the right crop for you.
Crimson Clover FAQ
Most growers plant 15 to 25 pounds of crimson clover seed per acre, depending on soil conditions and planting method. Higher rates help create faster ground cover and stronger weed suppression.
When drilling, 15 to 20 pounds of crimson clover seed per acre is usually sufficient because placement is more precise. For broadcasting, increase the rate to 20 to 25 pounds per acre to account for less consistent seed contact with the soil.
This works out to roughly 0.35 to 0.6 ounces of crimson clover seed per 100 square feet. Using this range helps ensure even coverage and healthy establishment.
Crimson clover is typically planted in late summer or early fall for use as a winter annual. Spring planting also works in some regions, though fall planting usually produces stronger growth.
For a crimson clover cover crop, late summer to early fall planting allows the plant to establish before winter. This timing maximizes biomass and nitrogen benefits in the spring.
In Zone 5, plant crimson clover in late summer and consider mixing with a small grain for winter protection. Zones 6 through 8 allow planting from late summer into early fall with more consistent overwinter survival.
Crimson clover typically blooms in mid to late spring, producing its bright red flowers. Bloom timing depends on planting date and local weather conditions.
When mixed with grasses or small grains, reduce crimson clover seed to about 8 to 12 pounds per acre. This balance prevents competition while still delivering strong crimson clover benefits.
Crimson clover is an annual that establishes quickly and produces early spring growth, while red clover is usually a longer-lived perennial or biennial. Crimson clover is often chosen for fast cover crop performance and easier termination.
Crimson clover benefits include nitrogen fixation, erosion control, and improved soil structure. As a crimson clover cover crop, it also supports pollinators and adds organic matter back into the soil.
Crimson clover may reseed under ideal conditions if allowed to fully mature and drop seed. In most systems, it is treated as an annual and replanted each season for consistent results.
Ready to make your purchase?
If crimson clover looks like the right option for your forage and cover crop requirements, get in touch with us and locate a Kings AgriSeed Certified Dealer near you: