Well, I believe I have solved the mystery. I had more than one problem to say the least. It seams that when they built the house they dumped anything and everything (trash, building materials, and some kind of gooey stuff that must have been putty or glue or something that looked like slimey ooze) in that spot and then covered it over with dirt. That was 20 years ago. In the meantime all that stuff made a mess of the dirt. The man at the nursery said that when he tested the soil it had more problems in it than the United Nations! He suggested that we dig out the soil and start anew. So right now we are still digging. It's a big job and my hubby and I aren't spring chickens anymore, so it's taking time. Once we have it dug out, we will have the soil tested again to make sure we got past the bad dirt and then we will have the hole filled with new "clean" dirt.
Thank you everybody for all your kind advise. I truly appreciate it. Once I am finished I will send you a picture of my new healthy plants.
Meet you in the garden,
Susie