Oh you guys make me jealouse. I had a garden at my old house, Been here a year. I made a small raised box garden out front, but just havn't bothered with a garden out back. the thought of digging up all that grass and making a bed for vegggies! Oh it just makes my back hurt thinking about it.
Oh yes, and a month after we moved in here, we got orders for VA. So not even sure if Ill be here long enough to make a garden.
Atleast i got my pots, still going to have all my flowers this year.

I grow perennials ... and a lot of weeds...

And vegetables ... also with a lot of weeds.

Have discovered that the best splurge I can make, if I have any money to spend, is a big load of compost. It makes all the difference in the vegetable garden and probably would with the perennials too, if I had any left over.

The soil in my yard is clay. Someone told me that I should give the garden over to "sweet yellow clover" for a season, that it has a long taproot, mines the minerals from way down in the soil, and breaks up the clay. I may try it this year.

Favorite perennial: tall phlox (just because, no particular reason).

Favorite veggies: beets (so sweet, yum) and pole beans, because they are so ornamental (yellow, purple, green and striped).

Compost "happens" - just start a pile! I have a raised bed 30x10 made from concrete blocks set with the holes up so that I could plant herbs and flowers in the holes. In the bed is asparagus, raspberries and then I plant peppers and tomatoes. After grow season is over we start putting the grass clippings and leaves in and adding in the kitchen scraps. All the coffee grounds, banana peels, egg shells, fruit and veg peelings. DH turns it 2 or 3 times in early spring. Yesterday we got up the rest of the leaves and added them. There is still enpugh time for them to break down enough - I got a LOT of worms

Last year seeds from a spagetti squash made their way into the garden bed and I got 2 "free" spagetti squash. Lots of vine for the harvest!

Yes, compost happens... but slowly and... I have a slug problem. The compost heap has to be located far, far away from "the good stuff" as it is just the maternity ward for more slugs. :?

I am sooo ready to get my fingers dirty.The only thing is we have gophers,rabbits,deer.I use a lot of chicken wire.

I forgot,,,,I want your garden!!!!!

This is what it starts out as.

If you are going to hire someone any ways, maybe you could get them to build you another raised bed right beside the old one. Transfer the soil over and then you will have your raised bed. Where the old one was, that would be a perfect place to plant some flower seeds.

I've started cleaning up the greenhouse, found that DH had started using it for storage, like he doesn't have enough. Started seeds for wave petunias. Never tried them before and a perenial flower. Veggie seeds are ordered. Can't wait.

We cut the leaves and lettuce grows back.