Exactly. After I ripped up all the matting (which coincidentally looked quite porous, but obviously not) I noticed that the dirt under it was like a totally different planet entirely from the soil on the surface. It was so dry and none of the years of mulch that I've put in over the years was in that dirt obviously.

I can't physically get lots of new soil so I use the potting mix as well. In fact I even topsoil my little area of lawn with a very fine potting mix. Some have sticks and things in them, which is fine for the garden but not for topsoiling. I've found a really good cheapie that is quite fine and I can get that delivered in manageable size bags.

It's a bit warm out there now so I came inside again and lay under a fan for a while . lol eeek