Look above the area next to the house. Is it UNDER the roof overhang?
Could it be that the previous owner realized that area stayed too dry to grow?
Are there weeds growing in the stones? Are they lush, or spindly?

Are you saying that the rocks reach out 15" from the house?
Why not start your lasagna beds out past the stone area? Your plantings will hide the stones from view,
you won't have drainage problems with watering plants next to the house and you won't have to work so hard removing stones.
You can have nice deep flower beds because you can reach them from the back, standing on the stones.
Nell

Hi Denise, if you are going to plant small plants, like typical shade annuals and smaller perennials, you can just add your soil to a depth of about 12-15 inches, on top of whatever little rocks are left down there, and plant. Just make sure it does drain,and use organic matter if you can. If you don't have access to compost or shredded leaves, you can buy humus, composted manure, mushroom compost, and just plain old topsoil, which is not very "nutritious" for plants. You do not need newspapers,I don't think, becoz they are used to smother weeds or grass as a first layer, but if you are putting soil over the rocks, you don't need that.
If you were planning to plant large shrubs or such, then I'm not sure. You might want to dig til you see what's really at the bottom. Please make sure you call your state's phone number for location of utility and phone and cable lines. They can be very close to the house. Once we almost cut a line which was right off my front porch, and my husband insisted it was a root, but it wasn't.
Laurie

Denise - With that many rocks, I wonder if what you have is a drainage system that was put in to get water away from your basement wall to keep the basement dry. There might be drainage tile down under the smaller stones - or not. Would water be likely to drain down toward this side of your house from a nearby slope, or maybe from your roof? It's something to check out - maybe watch what happens the next time it rains.

If it is a drain, you'll want to put down some good landscape fabric over the small stones to keep dirt from working down into them and eventually clogging them. Then you could add some topsoil to that and go from there with your lasagna stack. I'm not especially knowledgeable about lasagna building, so I can't really say what minimum amount of topsoil you would need - maybe none??

Good luck and keep us posted.

ThinMan

Thanks for some new ideas.
Nell- the area is about 15'widex 8 feet out from the house & there's ivy that grows- even after I pulled it up many times and further out where there's actual dirt in the sunnier area there's two holly bushes & two conifers. So I wanted to make the whole thing a shade garden w/ the holly bushes (moved) maybe a hydrangea and a mix of perennials,ferns, & annuals - & plants w/ fragrance since it s next to the deck.
Laurie - I was digging away & never thought about lines- thanks I'll look into that.
Thinman -the house is actually higher on the property and has a gradual slope out - I remember the inspector making note of that. But I'll watch what happens when it rains. I think the previous owner who seemed to always go with a cheap solution might have gotten a deal on the rocks (he worked for the electric company) The driveway has them too. I like the idea of using the fabric though that sounds like a good idea. Thanks

Have you considered a Mediterranean rock garden for this spot? Advantages are that you would not have to move the rocks, and the plants would not require special care or extra watering once they are established. Although I just reread and noticed that it is a shady area, or would it not become shady until you move the hollies?

Here is a little summary of the type of gardening I am referring to.

Here is a link that might be useful: Wild Ginger Farm - Success With Rock Garden Plants