My Poor Herbs...

It seems I have been a bad bad green witch.  Upon moving into my new home, I had hoped that I would be able to overwinter my potted herbs in the (fairly sheltered) space under the front steps.  Unfortunately, I am seeing very few signs of life... I am thinking that I will have to start over.

The only plant that seems to be doing ok is the chives:

Here is the new plan: have fiance build a raised bed garden for the backyard.  I am going to start small, with a box that is 3 feet by 6 feet.  I plan to remove the sod from that area and dig down a few more inches (the soil underneath seems like a fairly equal mix of clay and sand).  This will allow me to fill it with good, healthy soil for my herbs and (hopefully) will allow my herbs to actually survive next winter.