Defiance Landscaping Digging Spade from the Polyfibre Range. This spade has a Polyfibre hilt and shaft for extra strength which will not shrink or rust, a metal head, PYD handle, 300mm socket welded at the rear, and is epoxy coated. The spade is treaded which should save wear on your boots and increase grip. A spade looks almost identical to a shovel except that the bottom edge is straight instead of curved. This design allows you to create a perfectly straight cut in the soil as opposed to the curved cut you get when using a shovel. Spades are used when digging out trenches for landscape edging because they create a straight even line which allows the edging to lay flat. This provides a more professional appearance to the landscape.