People have gardened in all kinds of soil, even rocky ones, for eons. It can be difficult and challenging. The soil particles, the sand, silt, and clay that make up our soil types come from those rocks and Ma Nature adds the organic matter unless we interfere with that process. What we can do is add sufficient quantities of organic matter to the soil we have. We may need to remove some of the larger rocks, especially if you are not a no till gardener.

I haven't read Ruth Stout myself but as I understand it, she is a no-till practitioner who had the benefit of prior generations removing rocks and manuring.

"I don't see how vegetables can thrive in rocky, rocky soil."

Never had any success with it myself. NY & NE don't have stone fences because the farmers liked the rustic look.

My bed and my neighbor's beds are extremely rocky, but small-ish rocks, mostly shale. Our gardens are quite productive in spite of it. I keep thinking that I should remove the rocks, but there are just too many for that to be practical. I remove the biggest of them, and half-heartedly remove a few others when the mood strikes, but unless I plan to dig down a foot or two and sift it all, I'm still going to have loads of rocks.

In the areas where the the shale vein comes near the surface, one neighbor built a retaining wall and turned her entire back yard into a raised bed of sorts...and I've built a decorative stone raised bed along her retaining wall on my side.

I grew up gardening in Rhode Island, where the rocks were much bigger, and never stopped surfacing, even after decades of removing them every Spring. We'd dig them out, and build walls out of the largest of them...but these small ones in my current yard are a different matter.

You mentioned the area used to be woods, which to me implies a thin soil to begin with...

some people, if they want immediate results on a poor soil, garden in raised beds with imported soil ... otherwise I think you will continue to see soil improvement year after year as you continue to add compost and mulch. Its a gradual process that happens slowly.

Alphonse, you made me laugh!

Joepyeweed, the funny thing is that it varies considerably every few feet or so. The space is 50 by 30 feet. I had previously done a soil test in one of the quadrants (when I had a smaller fence 10 years ago) and now I am wondering if I should do a soil test of the entire area taking samples from each quadrant and mixing them together (as per the instructions) or if I need multiple soil tests. I will dig in one area and find pretty nice looking loam, with loads of rocks of course) and then another area is a ridiculous strip of clay.

I guess I just need to soldier on, remove rocks, add compost, continue mulching. And on my left is a very old stone wall in the distance to remind me of our predecessors' battle with the rocks....:-)

Ainhoa, I grew up in central NYS, where we had a large garden in a rock field! The soil in between the rocks and stones was lovely, though. We children would be obliged to 'pick rocks' (you know, like picking tomatoes) every year before planting time. I don't remember what Dad did with all of those stones over the years, other than the outdoor fire place.

rhizo_1, you make me laugh...I was thinking that as soon as my 2-year-old was a bit older, I'd be putting her on rock-picking duty!

I picked rocks as a child also, I'm 57 now and still picking rocks out of the same garden! I get about a half pickup load every year.

Most of them are Pink Quartzite. Very pretty. I pile them up close to the road on the edge of my property and I have a sign, Free Rocks Take What You Want, and most of them disappear.

I remove rocks with a fervor bordering on mania. Ruths' gardens, as Alphonse mentioned, were built on ground that had been previously cleared of stones. While many plants will easily accommodate the occasional rock in the way, root crops will do best in soil free of obstructions. The solution is to choose a section of the garden where you will be growing your carrots, and double dig and sift that soil first. Every year, as you rotate your crops, if you do another section, eventually you will have a pile of stones for building, some rocks to use where drainage would help, and some pebbles for mulch, or the driveway, or as ammo for the slingshot when the javelinas attack. There are some advantages to rocky soil, it is good for drainage, and provides a slow (very) source of minerals as they break down.

The process by which rocks continue to appear has to do with the fact that water expands when it freezes. As it drains through the soil, it collects under the existing stones. If it freezes, it lifts the stone incrementally. When the ice melts, the space fills in with small soil particles (silt) and the stone is that much higher. In the beds that I sifted 18" deep 20 years ago, I'm now finding rocks when I dig that far down. I would have to dig and sift 4 feet down to prevent this, to get below the frost line. I won't live long enough to worry about it, but I may add an addendum to my will, just so the kids have a "heads-up"

It is mania inspiring isn't it, bil lme? Someone in Italy told me that his neighbor was so frustrated with the rocks that kept coming over the years after all his digging, that he had someone come in with an excavator, dig the entire garden out, pour cement and create a big container and then pour the soil back in!

rhizo_1, I paid my 10 year old $5 for 3 hours of rock picking last weekend :-) I must say he worked hard....

IME, rocks are little to no issue. I agree with Kimm, they are not a cause of poor plant growth, generally. I deal with very rocky fields every year and see crops thriving amidst rocks of all sizes.

If you were my dad, I would want dibs on those rocks, unless the will stipulated all the children must dig up all the rocks to claim an inheritance.

I live in a suburban neighborhood now and have gardened here for 40 years with very few problems with rocks. However, I grew up on a farm in northeastern Vermont and all these references to "rock picking" jolted some faded memories of doing it. At the time I hated it but, as I sit here this morning thinking about it, it wasn't so bad. My mother helped us make a game out of it with the winner having the biggest pile of rocks. She was a mighty fine mom and as I reflect, perhaps a bit crafty.

regarding the OP, likely the problem is compacted soil, not the rocks themselves.

I lived along the coast of SC for many years and rocks were non-existent. Whenever someone from my family back in NY came for a visit, they had to bring me a bucket of rocks.

rhiz 1, my wife had a sister who own a 275 acre Christmas tree farm just south of Tenn. in N.C. mountains. Every time I went up there they told me to take all I wanted.
This is the same family who moved to Ga. to grow Muscadine vineyard & has the cloveless Garlic.

True confessions: I collect rocks from places we travel to and PUT them in the garden. I figure it's adding a homeopathic dose of minerals from all those distant places. :) (But not big ones -- they would make my suitcase too heavy.)