We have learned the important conditions necessary for the sprouting
of seeds and for the growth and development of roots. We have also
learned something about the soil, its properties, and its relation to,
or its behavior toward these important conditions. We are therefore
prepared to discuss intelligently methods of treating the soil to
bring about, or maintain, these conditions.


SPADING THE SOIL

The typical tool for preparing the soil for root growth is a spade or
spading fork (Fig. 49). With this tool properly used we can prepare
the soil for a crop better than with any other.

In spading, the spade or fork should be pushed into the soil with the
foot the full length of the blade and nearly straight down. The handle
is then pulled back and the spadeful of earth is pried loose, lifted
slightly, thrown a little forward, and at the same time turned. The
lumps are then broken by striking them with the blade or teeth of the
tool. All weeds and trash should be covered during the operation. A
common fault of beginners is to put the spade in the soil on a slant
and only about half the length of the blade, and then flop the soil
over in the hole from which it came, often covering the edge of the
unspaded soil. The good spader works from side to side across his
piece of ground, keeping a narrow trench or furrow between the spaded
and unspaded soil, into which weeds and trash and manure may be drawn
and thoroughly covered, and also to prevent covering the unspaded
soil. If this work has been well done with the ordinary spade or fork
and finished with a rake, the result will be a bed of soil twelve to