Is digging into the soil when top dressing fry amendments necessary or can I just top dress and then water without mixing or digging it into the soil?

[Taino1171]

Last week when my autoflower was three weeks old, I top dressed in its 3 gallon co trainer of fox farm ocean forest soil 2 tablespoons of dr earth all purpose 444 and dr earth flower girl 394 and I was mixing and digging it into the soil, that's when I accidentally ripped out a small root. Its 4 weeks and a day old now and theres alot more root growth that some are poking out from the surface of the soil if I dig or scratch a few centimeters into it.

Why cant I just top dress the dr earth dry amendments and then water it in without mixing or digging into the surface of the soil and not risk ripping roots?

 

[Builder0101]

Scratching it into the surface a little helps insure that the topdress does not clump up and float etc. You can do whatever you want.

 

[created2live4ever]

On the other hand think how it works in the nature. Leaves and other stuff drops to the ground and topdresses the soil without any scratching... Unless wildpigs are looking for tasty roots... but anyways the rain falls on it and makes it go slowly down with the nutrients. So if you wanna go no-till I think you can just spread it on top and leave like that... if the powder layer is thicker then - like @Builder0101 said - it can clump up and build this kind of clay-like thing which is I think not the best thing hmm...
Am I right or am I right...?

 

[Builder0101]

On the other hand think how it works in the nature. Leaves and other stuff drops to the ground and topdresses the soil without any scratching... Unless wildpigs are looking for tasty roots... but anyways the rain falls on it and makes it go slowly down with the nutrients. So if you wanna go no-till I think you can just spread it on top and leave like that... if the powder layer is thicker then - like @Builder0101 said - it can clump up and build this kind of clay-like thing which is I think not the best thing hmm...
Am I right or am I right...?

Yes and no. A shallow scratch does not destroy the SFW like deep tilling. Yes leaves fall and get blown into piles by the wind so floating fertilizer that clumps and piles up here and there in the pot is kinda like nature in that way. So sure. I like the idea of uneven distribution of fertilizer. JK of course. But it is funny. I'd scratch it in. As with EVERYTHING about this plant a million opinions. Dude or chick gotta figure it out.