How to Secure Wooden Posts in the Ground With Rocks and Spikes

Put on leather or thick fabric gloves to protect your hands from splinters or cuts as you work with the wooden posts and soil. The gloves also buffer fingers from being pinched against the post and soil in the hole.

Orient the wooden post perfectly upright, or any desired angle needed for the project. Support the post with your nonfavored hand, maintaining the desired post orientation throughout the project.

Drop rocks into the post hole so they wedge against the post and soil wall as deep into the hole as possible. Differently sized rocks may be needed on opposing sides of the hole around the post.

Backfill the hole with a shovel to eliminate air pockets around the rocks and post base. Tamp the soil down with the handle end tip in the hole. Add more rocks as the hole is filled to wedge the post snugly into the hole.

Insert rock or long metal spikes into the top of the hole or gap around the top of the hole. While holding the post upright at the desired angle, tamp the spike head downward into the hole with a rubber mallet. Use multiple spikes around the entire base of the post to eliminate any movement gaps between the post and the wall of the hole.

Backfill the hole with sand or fine-particle soil after the rock or metal spikes are driven into the top of the post hole. Although optional, adding the extra soil and letting it fill the hole adds stability to the post and reduces any slight movement of the post later on from wind or other forces.