What does "turf" mean?

Additional senses

1. 2.Race course; horse racing; -- preceded by the. "We . . . claim the honors of the turf." Cowper. Note: Turf is often used adjectively, or to form compounds which are generally self-explaining; as, turf ashes, turf cutter or turf- cutter, turf pit or turf-pit, turf-built, turf-clad, turf-covered, etc. Turf ant (Zoöl.), a small European ant (Formica flava) which makes small ant-hills on heaths and commons. -- Turf drain, a drain made with turf or peat. -- Turf hedge, a hedge or fence formed with turf and plants of different kinds. -- Turf house, a house or shed formed of turf, common in the northern parts of Europe. -- Turf moss a tract of turfy, mossy, or boggy land. -- Turf spade, a spade for cutting and digging turf, longer and narrower than the common spade.
2. 3.To cover with turf or sod; as, to turf a bank, of the border of a terrace. A. Tucker.