Topdressing
/TOP-dress-ing/🧑🌾 Cultivation● Basic
Also known as: top-dressing, surface dressing
The practice of spreading a thin, even layer of material — usually compost, sand, or a soil mix — over the surface of a lawn, planting bed, or growing area. On lawns, topdressing fills in aeration holes, improves soil over time, levels minor undulations, and encourages decomposition of thatch. In borders, topdressing with compost or bark mulch suppresses weeds and feeds the soil. Application is typically done in spring or autumn.
Etymology
English top + dressing (application, covering)
Example
“After core aerating in autumn, topdress the lawn with a quarter-inch layer of screened compost.”