RE: Mowing my clover plot
I've mowed our clover plots with lawn tractors with the deck all the way up as well as with a brush hog and can't say that I saw any difference. Clover also grows real good in our yard that we mow much lower.
I also agree that you need to keep the clippings from piling up and killing what is underneath, but I have a bigger problem with this when I use the brush hog.
If the lawn tractor is all you have then it is surely better than not mowing at all. I've seen the weeds and grass completely take over some of our clover plots in only one summer when we didn't get them mowed at all.