Toughest challenge for gardeners in the NE?

He is floating down the same gutter we are, we may as well tie off the inner tubes with some rope and stop off at the packie for some brewskies.

sounds good to me - reminds me of my 20's - tubin' down the Esopus River in the Catskills! Man was that water cold!

My biggest problem is clay soil, so I grow all my veggies in raised beds filled with a topsoil-compost mix.

KingFisher, Is that a killer cost wise?

Dave, When I started my veggie bed I bought 2 dump truck loads of top soil, about $250 then. More now for sure.
It was a long term investment that is still paying off 20 years later.
At the time I wanted to get started right away, not have to spend 2 months digging and screening this sand and gravel pit I live in. I had no compost the first year either.
I'm a penny pinching Yankee, but this was worth it to me.
I bet KingFisher feels the same way. (Maybe not the penny pincher part, LOL)
Andy P

How big of a garden were you able to cover with 2 loads?

I'm guessing a little under 300 sq. ft. at 8 inches deep.
Andy P

That's prety good. I would think 8" is plenty deep enough. I was thinking more like the 2' or 3 ' ones some people put in. That would cost 3 or 4 x as much.
It does solve a lot of problems to put in raised beds.

Dave, I spent $147 on two yards of screened topsoil and two yards of compost including delivery. I used this to fill 200 square feet of raised beds of various sizes, all between 8 inches and 1 foot deep. I did mix in some native soil , but not that much. The plants seem to do better in these beds than in the ground, even though I always end up overcrowding them. It is much easier to control weeds, moisture and fertilizer in the raised beds. This year I plan to build a few more. They also help with customizing the soil for specific plants, some of which have different soil and nutrient requirements.

Thanks KingFisher & Andy.

Dave, My veggie garden is not raised. It's against the house foundation on one side and a retaining wall on 2 sides then tapers down toward the driveway. It is raised a couple of inches along the narrow edge against the driveway. There was plenty of room to add soil without overflowing the walls.
Andy P

We split the cost with our neighbors, getting a good deal on about 8" of top soil for our circle bed retained by stone walls. I think we spent about $75. The plants love it!

Hello Ivy. That was a great deal.