Kathy, if you are going to plant clover for the bees specifically, do plant the white or Dutch,, t.repens, I believe it is called. As far as the red or purple clover that you speak of, the tongue of the honeybee (whether Carniolan or Italian) is just not as long as the Bombus, and they cannot as easily reach the nectary of the flowers. The Bombus go nuts on the red and purple clovers, so it is still OK to plant these species for the bumblebees.
I have the white clover that grows like wildfire all over my property. In particular there is a massive wild lawn around and behind my apiary. I cut this lawn, which is full of white clover, with my lawnmower, the clover never stops blooming. It keeps flowering and flowering, right up until the end of the fall. I believe that this is because of incredible fertilization from the bodies of the dead honeybees (or poop). These clovers are gone wild. I think that mowing them continues the flowering cycle. We all know that deadheading many perennials (and of course annuals for sure), can prolong the flowering season for an extended time. So does mowing the clover field. First year that I have had a great clover (and grass lawn) lawn that grows so beautifully around the apiary. Kathy, clover also sets nitrogen into the soil, so it is a wonderful plant to have growing on your property, plants thrive on great nitrogen within the soil. Have a wonderful and beautiful day, great health wishes for us all. Cindi