Lawn Top Dressing Guide

Achive the lawn of your dreams!

What is Top Dressing

The process of top dressing a lawn involves the application of a thin layer of a specialist sand / soil mix to the surface of an existing lawn.

A purpose specific product such as a 70/30 Topdressing or our 50/50 Lawn Soil Mix should be used for this process, do not use a general purpose topsoil.

Professional grade 70/30 top dressing is a 70% mix of horticultural sand and 30% Sterilised loam, which has been screened to 3mm and dried to ensure a weed free and free flowing material, which is eay to apply and work into the root zone of turf.

The Benefits of Topdressing a Lawn

Topdressing has many benefits, application of a good quality sand / soil bend topdressing will stimulate grass growth, aid drainage, produce a firm, level lawn, improve soil structure and root zone, increase resilance and most of all result in a stunning lawn.

When to Topdress a Lawn

Topdressing should generally be applied during periods of grass growth, so for us Uk gardeners, this means between April and October.

Topdressing can be applied without any other lawn treatements, however the process is often carried out after some form of lawn rejuvenation work, namley airation or scarifying, and often followed by overseeding.

How to Topdress a Lawn

The process of applying topdressing is fairly simple. Start of by mowing your lawn as short as possible and then apply a thin layer of lawn top dressing at a rate of approximatley 2.5kg to 5kg per m2 (3-6mm depth).

This is best achived by puting piles of topdressing (from a wheel barrow or by cutting open 25kg bags) at regular intervals accross your lawn and then spreading these piles out with a landscaping rake (this is best carried out in dry weather).

The topdressing should then be worked into the grass root zone (using the flat back of the rake is best to achive a level lawn), until it has mostly dispersed through the grass. A light watering with a sprinkler (if no rain is forecast) can help work the topdressing into the lawn.

Overseeding

At this point many gardeners will also choose to apply a light coverage of grass seed to the lawn, know as overseeding, this helps thicken the lawn bringing new growth and a really thick, dense appearance.

See our article on Overseeding a lawn