Evelyn, if you're worried about drainage, I would just raise the new beds up . Digging down can help drainage, but in a Winter with a high amount of rain, that dug up bed might become a swimming pool.
Thank you for the warning about critters and corn gluten. All I need is for them to be more attracted to my garden. As it stands, all my fruit trees on the hill are already stripped clean of all their unripened fruit.
