Choose and mark the position you wish your plant or fence post to be. Make sure you measure the positions carefully if precision is required as it would be disappointing if you made a mistake and had to fill in your hole and dig a new one. You can mark the position with a stone, a small stake or spray paint.
Step 2 – Prepare manual post-hole auger
Take your manual post-hole auger and place the tip on your mark. Place both hands on the handle, one on each side of the centre. The further your hands are from the centre of the handle, the more leverage you have and the less effort you need to put in.
Step 3 – Twist handle
Twist the handle by pushing with your left hand and pulling with your right hand. This will turn the thread clockwise. Increase your downwards pressure on the handle and the blade will begin to cut into the ground. Make sure the shaft is straight up and down to maximise the downwards pressure you place on the handle and to ensure a straight hole.
Step 4 – Remove soil from ground
Keep pressing down and twisting the handle until the tool has penetrated about 150mm (6″) to 300mm (12″) deep into the soil. At this point, pull the tool straight up out of the ground. You may need to push and pull the shaft of the manual post-hole auger to loosen the soil before the tool will pull out of the ground.
Step 5 – Remove soil from manual post-hole auger
Remove the soil from the thread by tapping the shaft on something rigid and stable like a large stone or a wheelbarrow, if you have one, to knock the soil off.
Step 6 – Repeat
Repeat steps 2 to 5 until the hole is the depth you need. If you hit rocks which are too large to bring up with your manual post-hole auger, you may wish to use other digging tools to help you complete the hole. Digging bars break up tough and stony ground and post-hole diggers with a clamping action can bring up large stones.
