Creating a Garden Plot

I have a large raised bed and several containers that I try to do my urban gardening in (try b/c I haven't been very successful thus far); on top of that I have about a 1/2 acre of stupid rye grass or something not very pretty or productive. I decided I wanted to till a portion of the yard and expand my garden.

Problem - I don't have a tiller, can't see spending $450 for one, there are none on craigslist, and also can't see spending $80 to rent one for a day.

Solution - Maning the frick up, and doing it by hand.

Time it took to make a 5 x 8 square ready for planting = 2 hours.

Tools needed = Hoe, shovel and a rake.

It was such a beautiful day here I could not stand to be inside, so this was a fitting project. Several blisters later I had worked the earth into what looks like a nice brown patch. I have no idea if the grass will grow back, I tried to move the earth down about six inches over the entire plot. Hopefully this will allow me to double my production capacity in the coming growing season.