# Digging a hole on full moons or different times of the year?



## Handgunner

My buddy said something the other day while we were replacing the power pole that a pecan limb took out.

We didn't have enough dirt to fill the hole back up, even after putting the pole back in.  He said something to the effect of "well, we dug it at the wrong time of the year".

What's the tale of that saying?  And does it hold true?  Why?


----------



## Havana Dude

*I*

Have seen it happen on numerous occasions. I can't explain it but know it does happen.


----------



## No. GA. Mt. Man

I've saw it happen but don't know why either.


----------



## HT2

*Delt.........*

          

I don't know.....


----------



## Woody's Janitor

I've seen it and believe it!


----------



## Dustin Pate

My grandfather always said this. Most of the time it was about digging a grave and not having enough to fill the hole. I think it was something about the full moon.


----------



## xjd33x

Seen it myself, very true.


----------



## Headshot

Delton, my dad was a utility lineman and he swore the moon's  phases affected the amount of dirt used to fill holes, etc.  On the full moon they had too much dirt; the other side of the phase they didn't have enough dirt.


----------



## LJay

Yep, I've seen it and heard the grave story all my life.


----------



## No. GA. Mt. Man

It has to be something to do with the gravitational pull of the moon......


----------



## gordon 2

Uneducated guess: The full moon raises the H2O out of the soil faster that say in the black moon. In much the same way as the oceans rise highter at full moon, add the effect of evaporation and your soil gets slim and thin and therefore fills a smaller space than usual on a full moon. 

Therefore grave diggers should somehow rehydrate the soil or dig and bury on wet days...and linesman cant really trickle down the pole hole cause of the live lines...So...we would shoot a couple of rock down the hole..when we were kids. This of course is all **....


----------



## 7Mag Hunter

*Digging holes*

Never heard this one...Dirt out...pole in...seems you would
have dirt left over....
Full moon is close, so lets all dig holes and have survey
results....NOT....

7mag hunter


----------



## No. GA. Mt. Man

It sounds silly but it is true.


----------



## gacowboy

I have also seen it happen. I wish I knew why???


----------



## Handgunner

Gordon, I could see how that could happen I suppose.  I could also see how one would have too much dirt.  Beings that it's packed tightly and once taken out, breaks up, making it go back into the hole more loosely.

I suppose one could pack and pack.. But with the displacement of dirt by the pole, even packing shouldn't work.


----------



## GeauxLSU

Don't know why but it drives me crazy when it happens.    

Here's one for you, why does the moon look BIGGER when it's closer to the horizon?


----------



## Handgunner

GeauxLSU said:
			
		

> Don't know why but it drives me crazy when it happens.
> 
> Here's one for you, why does the moon look BIGGER when it's closer to the horizon?


 The heat waves from the earth act as sort of a magnifying glass...    The higher up it gets, the more they have an effect on it. 

No clue, but a good question Phil...


----------



## gadeerwoman

Remember my Dad telling me that when I was knee high and then proving it to me. Having put in a many a fence post since then, I can vouch for it. Can't explain it, but it's true.


----------



## sentrysam

I also agree,after spending most of my life building and repairing power lines,I've planted hundreds of poles and at certain times of the month you can not fill the hole up with all the dirt you took out.Strange but true


----------



## Nugefan

We were discussing this yesterday ....

i think it's during waxing or waning of the moon , sometimes you don't have enough dirt to refill the hole ....

Mr.Vernon , where are you ....we need your help


----------



## Handgunner

I figured Vernon would be on this.  But he must be off with his bow trying to put some meat in the freezer...


----------



## JerryC

Y'know, every year in school I struggled to think of something when it came time to do a Science Project. This would be a good one for some kid to try. -JerryC


----------



## Snakeman

Great Uncle Henry always said it had to do with the waxing and waning moon.  I can't remember which way it went, whether you wouldn't have enough dirt to fill the hole on a waxing moon, or on a waning moon.  Anyway, he told me that sometimes contractors, who had a pile of dirt left over from clearing an area for construction would wait until the proper moon phase, then dig a hole and bury the extra dirt.

The Snakeman


----------



## Vernon Holt

*Digging a Hole*

I don't mean to appear to contradict, but I consider this to be an "old wives tale" with no basis in fact.

I believe this matter to be a function of the relative wetness or dryness of the soil at the time the hole is dug.

Dry soil will pack (tamp) much tighter (closer) than will wet soil.  Wet soil will not pack tight because water occupies space between the soil particles.  For this reason, if working in wet soil, you will often have soil left over.

On the other hand when working with dry soil, it will pack tighter than the soil in its original state (prior to digging), thus making it likely to be insufficient to fill up the hole.

All this depends upon whether you pack the soil as you fill in around the post.  It is obvious that if you do not pack the soil you will have a loose post, and you will always have soil left over.  By the way, I have dug a few holes and set a few posts (not meaning to imply that others haven't).

Vernon


----------



## CAL

Mr.Vernon,I hate to disagree with you but it is the wasting of the moon when there is not enough dirt to fill up the hole.Like you ,I have dug many holes and packing the dirt had little effect as we always packed the dirt tight to hold the post.Just like we never did casterate calvies till the moon was right.I think the sign had to be in the tail or going out or the calvies would bleed quite heavy.In the right sign they would bleed very little.Plant root crops on days with dark nights also.Kill unwanted brush and weeds on the waste of the moon also.

Genesis,chapter 1,verse 14.....And God said,Let there be lights in the firmament of the heaven to divide the day from the night;and let them be for signs,and for seasons,and for days,and years.


----------



## Ga-Spur

Ya'll done went and found one of dem black holes , I do believe.


----------



## Handgunner

So we still don't have a definate answer one way or the other...


----------



## gadeerwoman

I think the problem was actually that you can't pack the dirt tight enough to hold the post during certain times of the moon. You'll always end up with a loose post.


----------



## Handgunner

Sandra, with all due respect ma'am... You've met me, you've seen me.  Packing dirt, I should have no problem with!!


----------



## gadeerwoman

You're BAAAADDDD !


----------



## pbradley

I'm assuming the hole diggin' is taking place in Georgia, but have you tried fillin' one with black panthers?


----------



## Handgunner

Pbradley,

Yes, but we've only found two of them.  We need about 4 more to make it full.


----------



## BowArrow

Old wives tale.

Same as 'Hot water will freeze faster than cold water'


----------



## GeauxLSU

BowArrow said:
			
		

> Old wives tale.
> 
> Same as 'Hot water will freeze faster than cold water'


Not exactly.  Do a net search on "the Mpemba effect".


----------



## No. GA. Mt. Man

Here is a link to the the Mpemba effect. Digging a hole on a full moon isn't a wives tale either even though it sounds like it is. http://www.school-for-champions.com/science/mpemba.htm


----------



## CAL

I assure any and all it is not a wives tale.There is a man in Andalusia,Ala.that publishes a little book each year that is a guide to the signs and how to read them.The title of his book is "God's Way And Charts".

Ecclesiastes 3:1&2-To everything there is a season and a time to every purpose under the Heavens.A time to plant and a time to gather that which is planted.

He also gives times to hunt and fish,planting crops,kill brush,having surgery,pulling teeth,friendship,and buying and selling to name a few.Book is pretty interesting to say the least.I put a lot of it to the test with some good results.I picked up the book when I first got it and it just happened to be the 6th.sign,Virgo.This is a barren sign and good for killing brush.I cut some weeds and briers that were on a fence row that had been there for many years,they never came back!

The book is $4.00 or was.If anyone wants the address,pm me and I will give it to you.You can see for yourself!


----------



## AAADawg

I had an old black man working for me once and all he had done his entire life was run a shovel of one sort or another...he told me that you could not put all the dirt back in a dicth that you dug during a full moon and therewouldnt be enough  dirt to fill up the same ditch on a new moon...or vice verse..any way he beleived it with all of his heart and it sure seemd that way.


My father and i used to argue about hot water freezing fatsre than cold water and in laboratory conditions it is possible.,..there is a term for this effect. I dont knwo what it is...but outside the lab 33 degree water will become a solid much quicker than boiling water will......although he boiling water will most definitely lose temperature faster due to the increased distance between the water molecules!


----------



## leadoff

I have found that I can dig deeper holes right around the middle of February.


----------



## Meriwether Mike

We need one of our more youthful members to volunteer to dig 100 holes with post hole diggers to settle this one. Give me a few days to get them laid out and we can get an answer.


----------



## Randy

I don't believe in this wives tale.  In fact I don't believe in anything my wives tell me.


----------



## Handgunner

Randy said:
			
		

> I don't believe in this wives tale.  In fact I don't believe in anything my wives tell me.


 

I  can assure you this one is true.  My only question is "why"?


----------



## GAMHUNTER35

yea  you  always   want  to  dig  a  hole  or  ditch  when  the  moon  is  on  the  increase  an  not  on  the  fall.


----------



## Al33

I'm pretty good at digging holes and not being able to get out of them, and it doesn't seem to matter what phase the moon is in.  

I sure have enjoyed reading about this. 

Cal, PM sent. The book will make for some interesting reading and tests.


----------



## CAL

Answered your pM Al!I have heard the first sign to stop digging is when you realize ya can't get out.
Also heard about the donkey what fell in a well.The owner decided to cover him up.Started throwing dirt on him and he just kept stepping up on the dirt.Next thing they knew the ole donkey stepped out of the well and walked off!
Moral of story...When ya find yourself in a hole and folks just want to throw dirt on you,use it to step up and get out of the hole ya in.


----------



## SuperSport64

im a heavy equipment operator / backhoe alot i dig alot of holes big holes and i see it often full moon you will have dirt left over after hole is full on new moon not enough to fill hole


----------



## slightly grayling

I do not believe this.....but I didn't believe in "witching sticks" to locate water or utilities until I had a driller I was working with find 3 abandoned gas lines buried under asphalt on the first attempt....


----------



## horsecreek

CAL said:
			
		

> Answered your pM Al!I have heard the first sign to stop digging is when you realize ya can't get out.
> Also heard about the donkey what fell in a well.The owner decided to cover him up.Started throwing dirt on him and he just kept stepping up on the dirt.Next thing they knew the ole donkey stepped out of the well and walked off!
> Moral of story...When ya find yourself in a hole and folks just want to throw dirt on you,use it to step up and get out of the hole ya in.



ya, but from what these guys are saying, you would still be outa luck if your on the wrong side of the moon phase....  

lets see guys..
dig 2 holes the same
1 hole put nothing in but the dirt back in , and the other fill halfway with concrete then the remaining dirt.
1 hole is gonna be a lil shy (ie the 1st) and the other will have plenty left over..(ie the 2nd).

NO MOON TO IT..


----------



## snuffspitter

*lunacy*

I dont know the reasoning behind it, but Ive heard it all my life, and as a landscaper I can vouch for it 100%.  Now I do know that ant lions dig their holes on a full moon.  Think they do it for the same reasons?


----------

