poking around in the dirt

i've been poking around the backyard, trying to remove weeds, plant material, and as much root as possible.  one day, we'll have a patio and a vegetable garden.

i'm trying to learn to identify the weeds, but i can only recognize bindweed (morning glory) seedlings:

(via)

a scary picture, huh?  their roots can grow 20 feet deep and their seeds can live 60 years!  (the uc integrated pest management website rocks.)

other discoveries:  a toy car, fake flower petals, lots and lots and lots of nails, snail shells, bones of random things, a spring from a mouse trap, plastic bits.