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How to start a Vegetable Garden?

Hey! I plan on starting a vegetable garden soon, I've never done any gardening before. Would an experience gardener like to offer some advice? I've got a few basic questions! 1) Do you test pH levels of the dirt in your garden? If so, can you have different pH levels in each row of plants? 2) I read that you can't plant strawberries close to peppers because they spread diseases. Have you tried this before? Is it better to have 2 gardens? 3) What do I need to do to the soil beforehand? Obviously I need to loosen it up a bit, maybe get some nice healthy dirt in there. Make it moist. Anything else? 4) What tools should I buy to start off with? I'm thinking a shovel, a trowel, some gloves, and a cultivator.Would you suggest anything else? 5) I know I'm a bit late on the spring season. What are good items to plant at this time? (I live in Tallahassee, FL) I would really like peppers, strawberries, spinach, and butternut squash (or pumpkin). Possibly blueberries or raspberries. Are these ok to plant at this time of the year? 6) Where is a good, local, informative place to shop for plants, seeds, tools, etc? I'd like an organic garden. Any other advice you'd like to offer? Thanks a bunch for any help!!! I really appreciate it!!! Any other advice???

Public Comments

1. You are gonna love gardening, don't try to do it all in one year. Get to know where the sun shines the most, and where the shaded areas are. Veggies need at least 6 hours of sun per day. And lots and lots of water everyday if you do not get rain. Since you are a beginner, this year start your garden with plants that you get from a garden center or nursery. They are called bedding plants and come in a six pack. Look for a little tag sticking in the six pact showing directions on how to grow the plants. If the tag is not there, ask for one or buy something else. Directions are VERY important. Seeds are not always easy to grow. Two good things to do for yourself is to call your local County Extension Service and ask for all the information that they have about home gardening in your area. They usually have a packet/kit of things for the home gardener. And number two would be to pick up a couple of beginner books. You really do need to know about soil, compost, mulch and etc. To keep from over watering or not watering enough, buy a water analyzer from a nursery or garden center. Be sure to read the directions. This will be one of your best tools. Send for some free gardening catalogs and get use to the different types of plants, colors, and when to plant. They are filled with good informtion and pictures. And they will keep you company during the long winter months. Here is a list of just a very few. There are hundreds more: http://www.waysidegardens.com http://www.dutchbulbs.com http://www.jacksonandperkins.com (Roses) http://www.parkseed.com (vegetables and flowers) http://www.burpee.com (vegetables and flowers) Other catalogs: http://www.leevalley.com http://www.gardeners.com http://www.GardensAlive.com (pests and insects) http://www.deerbusters.com (all types of animal control) ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ You can grow vegetables in large containers too. All need holes in the bottem for water drainage, Vegetable potting soil that comes in bags, Slow release fertilizer for veggies, OR liquid fertilizer that will need to be used more often-read directions, Water crystals to be mixed into the soil for holding water, Bedding plants or full grown plants.
2. 1. You can test with test strips, an indicator solution, or (my personal favorite) - a little probe that you stick in the ground and get an immediate readout. pH can vary a bit throughout the garden, but I doubt it would vary row to row. 2. Strawberries and peppers are both susceptible to Verticillium Wilt, so you wouldn't want to grow peppers where you grew strawberries last year. Proper crop rotation can help to minimize the effects of this. 3. It depends on what kind of soil your starting with. You should be able to get a soil test from your local cooperative extension, and they can give you recommendations. Generally speaking, you want lots of nice black organic material, and a proper balance of nutrients. 4. That sounds like a good tool set to start. I'd also recommend a rake. 5. Can't comment on this as I'm from Pennsylvania 6. I keep a copy of Rodale's Encyclopedia of Organic Gardening handy - it's a very good resource. I'd be hesitant to take too much advice from a store or nursery as they may just "advise" you to spend lots of money.
3. This "Getting Started" guide to buying gardening tools seems really helpful. Also, mysears.com is a great place to figure out which tools are the best to get. Good luck! http://www.mysears.com/Hand-Gardening-Tools/guides/A-Garden-Tools-Shopping-Guide-for-Beginners