Digging garden soil
Read the soil, use your foot rather than your arms, and dig considerably less than you were told to.
The soil picks the tool
A spade blade slices, so it works in soil that parts. In wet clay it does not slice, it compresses, and the clay sticks to the blade and to itself. A fork's tines split clay along its natural fracture lines and nothing clings to them, which is why a fork moves heavy ground perhaps three times faster.
Stony or compacted ground defeats both, because neither will penetrate past a stone or into set subsoil. That is what a mattock is for: it is swung, so its weight breaks the ground rather than being pushed into it.
- Loam and sand
- Spade. It slices cleanly and lifts a full load, which is exactly what these soils allow.
- Clay
- Fork. The tines split it along its fracture lines and, unlike a blade, nothing sticks to them.
- Stony or compacted
- Mattock or bar. Swung weight breaks ground that no amount of pushing will enter.
- Never dig wet clay
- It smears and sets like concrete, and the damage takes years of frost and organic matter to undo.
Dig much less than tradition says
Annual digging of established beds was standard advice for a century and the evidence has moved. Turning soil over breaks up the fungal networks and structure that took a season to build, brings buried weed seed up into the light, and releases carbon. Beds that are mulched rather than dug generally have fewer weeds and better structure within two or three years.
Digging still has its place: breaking new ground, relieving genuine compaction, incorporating a large volume of organic matter into poor soil, and lifting root crops. What it does not need to be is annual and routine.
- Mulch instead, on established beds
- Compost on the surface. Worms take it down, and weed seed stays buried where it cannot germinate.
- Fewer weeds, not more
- Digging brings buried seed into the light. An undisturbed mulched bed gets cleaner each year.
- Dig for a reason
- New ground, real compaction, or lifting crops. Not because it is autumn.
- Loosen rather than turn
- A broadfork or a fork rocked back relieves compaction without inverting the soil profile.
Digging without hurting yourself
Two rules cover most of it: keep the load close, and turn your feet rather than your spine. A twisting lift with a full spade held out at arm's length is the movement that causes most digging injuries, and it is entirely avoidable.
Use your foot to drive the blade in rather than your arms, because your body weight is far greater than your arm strength and costs you nothing. Then lever the load out on the shaft rather than lifting it dead. The tool is a lever and using it as one is the difference between a morning's work and three days of recovery.
- Foot, not arms
- Step the blade in. Your weight is greater than your arm strength and free to use.
- Lever, do not lift
- Pull back on the handle to break the load out. The shaft over the ground is a lever.
- Move your feet to throw
- Never twist under load. Turn the whole body, and the spine stays in line.
- Half loads, twice as often
- Faster overall and much easier afterwards. A full spade is not a target.
Digging spade or border spade
A digging spade has a blade around 290mm by 190mm. A border spade is noticeably smaller, and that is not a cheaper version: a smaller blade means a smaller load, which means less strain per lift and it fits between established plants.
Anyone who finds a full size spade heavy going should try a border spade before concluding digging is beyond them, because many people move more soil in an hour with the smaller tool. The same applies to forks.
- Digging spade
- The default for open ground, where the weight per lift is not the limiting factor.
- Border spade
- Smaller load, more lifts per hour, and it fits between plants. Often the faster tool in practice.
- Handle to your hip
- With the blade on the ground. Too short means bending, which is where back injuries start.
- Ash over fibreglass for repair
- Both are strong. A broken ash shaft can be replaced and most fibreglass ones cannot.
A clean blade is a sharp blade
Soil left on steel holds moisture and pits it, and pitted steel drags in the ground, which means more effort for the same hole. Scraping a blade clean after use is thirty seconds that measurably reduces how hard the tool is to use next time.
A spade also benefits from being sharpened, which surprises people. A file run along the leading edge at a shallow angle makes a real difference in turf and root filled soil.
- Scrape and dry
- Soil holds water against the steel. Pitting follows, and a pitted blade drags in every cut.
- Sharpen the leading edge
- A few strokes of a file at a shallow angle. Nobody does it and it cuts turf noticeably better.
- Oil bare steel
- An oily rag before storage prevents the rust a damp shed produces over one winter.
- Hang it up
- Blade off the concrete. A shed floor is the dampest part of the shed.
Frequently asked questions
- What garden tools do I need for digging?
- A digging spade, a digging fork and a soil rake cover most garden digging. Add a border spade and border fork for working between plants, a mattock for stony or compacted ground, and a wheelbarrow. That is genuinely the whole list for a domestic garden.
- Should I use a spade or a fork?
- A spade in loam and sand, where it slices cleanly and lifts a full load. A fork in clay, where a spade compresses rather than slices and the clay sticks to it. A fork's tines split heavy soil along its fracture lines, which is several times faster in wet ground.
- Do I need to dig my garden every year?
- No, and on established beds it is usually counterproductive. Turning soil over breaks the structure and fungal networks, brings buried weed seed into the light and releases carbon. Mulching with compost instead generally gives fewer weeds and better soil within two or three years.
- What is no dig gardening?
- Leaving soil undisturbed and adding organic matter to the surface, where worms and soil life take it down. It suppresses weeds because buried seed stays buried, and it preserves the structure and fungal networks digging destroys. Digging is kept for new ground and real compaction.
- Why should I not dig wet clay?
- Because it smears rather than breaking, which destroys the structure and sets almost like concrete as it dries. The damage takes years of frost cycles and added organic matter to undo. Wait until it is damp rather than wet, or work from a board.
- How do I dig without hurting my back?
- Drive the blade in with your foot rather than your arms, lever the load out on the shaft instead of lifting it dead, keep the load close to your body, and turn your feet rather than twisting your spine to throw. Smaller loads more often also help considerably.
- What is a broadfork for?
- Loosening deep soil without turning it over. A wide head of long tines is stepped in and levered back, which relieves compaction and lets air and water down while leaving the soil layers and structure intact. It is the main digging tool of a no dig approach.
- What is the difference between a digging spade and a border spade?
- Blade size. A digging spade is around 290mm by 190mm and a border spade noticeably smaller, which means a lighter load per lift and access between established plants. Many people move more soil per hour with the border spade, so it is not simply a lesser tool.
