252 THE BEGINNER'S GARDEN BOOK 



you yourself thrust in the spade, note how much more easily 

 it will go into hard ground if you use it corner-wise. Finally, 

 be careful in spading to use the weight of your body rather 

 than the muscles of your arms. If you must push the spade 

 into the earth, you will soon tire ; whereas if by simply lean- 

 ing on the spade you do the work, you will last much longer. 



The action of spading, then, is as follows : Your tool 

 should be so tall that you can adjust it for the thrust while 

 standing upright. Set it in position, then place your foot on 

 top of the blade of the spade, or on the shoulder of the fork. 

 Now, leaning forward slightly, throw your weight on the tool, 

 and thrust it to its full depth. Next, while still almost 

 upright, pry on the upper part of the handle and break the 

 earth loose. Now slide the lower hand down to the very 

 blade of the tool, still prying on the handle with the other. 

 You are ready now to lift the spadeful of earth with the least 

 exertion. Lift it, turn it over, and drop it. If the dropping 

 does not break up the lump, strike it with the blade of the 

 spade, or the tines of the fork. You will soon learn how to 

 pulverize it with the fewest blows. One ought to be enough. 

 Now stand upright, and get a moment's ease while adjusting 

 the tool for the next thrust. 



In spading the whole garden, I do as follows : Having 

 imagined the garden to be cut into a series of strips, from four 

 to six feet wide, I spade across the whole of the first strip, 

 dropping the forkfuls, not on the spot from which they 

 were first taken, but nearly a foot farther away from me. I 

 have thus made an open trench, four to six feet wide, and 

 about a foot deep. 



Into this open trench I drop the next forkfuls, taking 

 them one by one along the face of the trench, and leaving 

 another trench where they were taken. Thus as I continue 

 to spade, I move each forkful of soil a foot forward, and at 



