What you need to know about lawn topdressing and how to support your gorgeous lawn with this beneficial process
If a soil test reveals that your grass isn’t getting the support it needs to thrive, or a new lawn isn’t doing well, pulling up your grass to fix the problem just doesn’t make sense. That’s where lawn topdressing comes in – but it’s important to know how to do it right so you don’t damage your already-struggling lawn.
Borst Landscape & Design is the leader in organic lawn care services in Bergen County, NJ. For over thirty years, our expert team has been helping homeowners achieve the lawns of their dreams. Contact us and make an appointment today with one of our organic lawn care experts for a consultation today.
Call us at (201) 989-0902 or reach out online
What is lawn topdressing?
Lawn topdressing is the process of spreading organic matter onto the surface of your lawn, then allowing it to decompose naturally and mix into the soil. Typically ¼ to ½ inch of compost or other material is spread across the surface of your lawn with shovels, then it can be raked or watered in or left to settle on its own.
Topdressing is an old tried-and-true process dating back to the first golf courses in Scotland. It’s an excellent alternative to chemical treatments for lawn care. As more homeowners are coming to value the benefits of avoiding the use of dangerous synthetic chemicals on their property, lawn topdressing is coming back into fashion. And for very good reasons!
Significant benefits
Lawn topdressing has an incredible array of benefits for your soil and your grass. Benefits of topdressing include:
- Improving soil quality by adding organic matter
- Improving the capacity of soil to hold water
- Building up beneficial microbes in the soil
- Controlling thatch and smoothing out lawn surface
- Encouraging growth of dense, lush grass
- Reducing lawn stresses
- Limiting the need for additional fertilizers
Lawn topdressing is simply an excellent natural lawn care solution for grass. However, choosing the right material is critical, and applying it correctly can be time-consuming work. While specialized machines are available, they are costly investments for a process that is not done often. It’s best to use a professional service with experienced organic lawn care specialists for this very labor-intensive but extremely beneficial lawn care project.
Lawn topdressing is part of comprehensive lawn care
Spring is an excellent time to start a lawn care regime to carry you through the year. Manual topdressing is hard physical work, requiring shoveling, moving, and spreading piles of organic material evenly across the surface of the lawn. Doing it correctly, with the right material, amount and technique will lead to transformative results for your lawn.
Topdressing is best done alongside other organic lawn care practices like aerating, de-thatching, and overseeding. Topdressing immediately following aerating and overseeding is an ideal approach to achieving a robust lawn. Following these processes with regular landscape maintenance is critical to your success.
Borst Landscape & Design specializes in lawn maintenance and lawn care services that are safer, natural, and dependable. Reach out today to discuss lawn topdressing and an array of other organic lawn care services from Borst.
Call us at (201) 989-0902 or fill out our online contact form