This weekend, Saturday, the weather was glorious. In the 40s, ground thawed, warm enough to work outside with no coat. I couldn't resist, and dug my first veggie bed (for tomatoes, etc.). It's about 6 feet long, and 4 feet from front to back. I found mostly clay, so I dug down about 1 1/2 feet, and removed some clay. Spent a long time breaking up lumps, etc. I dumped soil from all my old broken flower pots into it, and I'm going to add peat hummus, mushroom compost, and potting mix. Also going to start composting leaves and stuff for future use. I did see a lot of earthworms, so that's a happy thing! I think that with this hillside property, multiple small beds is the way to go. I want to extend this bed down the length of the deck, and perhaps add some small beds along the fence for climbing things, like peas or beans. It's all a matter of time, weather, and my poor muscles. I certainly felt like I'd had a good workout afterward. Ignore the uneven, ugly border. That is absolutely temporary! 