Buy and mix together bagged cow manure and mushroom compost available at box stores, enough to cover top of bed about 3 inches. Plant and then spread pine straw mulch. Sandy soils are best enriched from the surface in the south.

River valleys are your best bet. Good farms are found in the Chehalis River valley in Grays Harbor county, of course the Skagit and Stillaguamish river valleys up north, and southwestern Washington like around Woodland, Battle Ground and Vancouver (Clark County area). Southwestern WA is beyond the glacial influence so they dont' have the miles and miles of glacial gravelly till that plague most Puget Sound area gardeners. I have been struck by total soil envy by tree farms in Everett and along the Lewis River and along the Stillaguamish, and a lilac farm outside of Woodland. And of course the Skagit River lowlands, though those tend to be rather sticky when wet. Stanwood area, too, I think I inspected a tree farm there with excellent soil. And a blueberry farm in Mossyrock with very very nice muck, just what you want for growing blueberries. Find an area that interests you climate wise, and then get the appropriate county Soil Survey, I think the USDA is the responsible organization for those. They'll tell you what soils appear where, with detailed descriptions of depth and grade, and what uses they're most appropriate for. I got a free Thurston County one at the county fair although I forget exactly who it was that was giving them away - WSU Extension maybe. I have also found Pierce and King county editions from the local Federal Government Repository (The Evergreen State College library). They get all kinds of government documents there although you have to be affiliated with the college to check them out, but anyone can look at them.

If you have lots of worms in your soil, it sounds like you already have some pretty good soil. Guess that doesn't help a whole lot if you need more to fill raised beds, though! Whenever you're putting a different soil on top of an already existing layer it's a really good idea to mix the two soils together fairly well where they meet. So I'd recommend putting 6-8" of the new soil where it's gonna go, then till or dig the new stuff into the old stuff, and then add the rest of the new on top of the mixed layer. That should prevent any sort of problems with water transfer between the new and the old. If your current soil really does have lots of organic matter and worms, it's possible you wouldn't even need to do that, but better safe than sorry! No fear on getting paranoid! Just check out the answers you get here and then pick the one or ones you like the best for yourself. The best way to garden is YOUR way! And the only way to figure that out is trial and error, which we all do---over and over and over....... ;-) Skybird P.S. If you get a chance, head on over to the Who's Here in 2014 thread and introduce yourself a little more. P.P.S. If you do get around to heading over to Timberline, you might want to take a zipper baggie of your current soil with you to see if you can get a general opinion on its quality.

Have you tried posting this on the container gardening forum? I'd say that selecting appropriate pots or cotainers is the least of your worries, as your winter cold will put pretty much everything at risk. FWIW, plants suited to long term container growth should be selected based on hardiness of at least one full zone (preferrably 2) colder than your regular climate, as that is the effect they will have to endure in a containered situation. That limites your choices to plants with a hardiness of zone 4 temperatures, better with zone 3. Size will have a significant bearing as well - the larger the container, the less likely the soil in it will freeze solid in winter. As for containers, wood will withstand winter cold better than any ceramic pot, but there is a large selection of frostpruf glazed pots originating in Asia that are totally winterproof, at least in my climate. Concrete aggregate should winterize well also but is heavy and very expensive and typically only available to the trade, as they are primarily used in commercial settings. Avoid terra cotta and plastic as neither will withstand freezes for long (terra cotta spalls and plastic cracks). A good quality potting soil - never regular garden soil - should be used, as garden soil is too heavy and doesn't have sufficient drainage. For long term container growth of trees and shrubs, I use a potting soil recommended specifically for them, as their needs are different than those of annuals or perennials or other, faster to mature plants. Adding some coarse, barky compost to regular potting soil will work if your choices of specific potting soils is limited. And always include some slow release fertilizer at time of planting. You will needs to supplement this as time goes by, as the watering requirements for plants in containers will leach any nutrients rapidly out of the soil and they will need to be replaced.