PRELIMINARY CONSIDERATIONS 19 



suitably moist and so make for fertility. Brown and 

 yellow soils are usually due to lesser quantities of 

 iron. 



Clays which, when cut with the spade, show iridescent 

 shades of purple, blue, and green should be avoided, as 

 these are sure signs of bad drainage and poor aeration, 

 conditions which are disastrous to plant growth. 



The Necessary Tools. The new hand at growing 

 vegetables will probably welcome a few hints regarding 

 the tools he requires for the work. First of all, let us 

 consider the spade. This should be of a weight to suit 

 the capacity of the one who has to use it, and to him it 

 should seem neither light nor heavy, but easily manipu- 

 lated. The length of the wooden arm varies with every 

 spade, and unless a convenient size be selected it will mean 

 much unnecessary backache and other discomforts. The 

 shape of the handle, either D or T shape, matters little, 

 but unless it is well rounded and smoothed it will cause 

 unnecessary blisters and otherwise damage the hands. 

 Of course, a thorough rubbing with fine glass paper may 

 do much towards putting a roughly made article into 

 good condition, but it is j ust as well to save this bother by 

 getting a serviceable implement at the time of purchase. 

 Then let us look at the rivets which fix the metal to the 

 wooden part. Are they firm and sufficiently stout and 

 does the arm look as though it might snap where they 

 pass through ? These are questions the buyer should 

 ask himself. The shoulder of the blade, too, requires 

 attention. If it has a narrow flattened platform or ridge 

 on which the foot of the digger presses it will cause less 

 harm to his boot than if it is innocent of this device. 



B 2 



