Newbie here with lots of questions

[Dove*]

Hi! I did my first three plants this summer, 2 tomato and one bell pepper (my dog ate the bell pepper plant! :cry). The tomatos came out ok, but didn't taste so great. Maybe my soil wasn't that good. Anyway, I want to plant more, but I don't know when to plant what. Is there anything I can start planting now? I know I can put some bulbs in, but what about vegis? Any basic, good first timer advise for me?

[Iarwain]

The taste of your tomatoes may very well be the variety rather than your soil. Some people just don't care for certain varieties. So don't give up on tomatoes, try a different type next year. There are hundreds to choose from.

Where do you live that you're thinking of planting right now? Do you know your USDA zone? Zone Map here. (http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://mgonline.com/zone_map.gif&imgrefurl=http://mgonline.com/zonemap.html&h=278&w=398&sz=38&tbnid=MnE4MCznLoELJM:&tbnh=87&tbnw=124&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dusda%2Bzone%2Bmap&start=3&sa=X&oi=images&ct=image&cd=3)
That makes a big difference. In the south I gather there are things you can grow through the winter, but up here we have freezing nights already so planting pretty much anything is out until a few super early things in March/April.

[Dove*]

We are in zone 10. I imagine it is too late for anything now. Do you know of a specific site for different zones that tell you when to plant what?

[katiekind]

One thing that has been fun, easy and useful for me to grow is cooking herbs which I grow in one big pot on my back porch. I have thyme, rosemary and basil all in one large clay pot, and they all were started from small little starter packs from the garden center. They have been completely trouble free, and it's been so gratifying to be able to go out and clip some to use in cooking.

[Iarwain]

Hmm... I don't know much about gardening in such a warm climate (I'm in zone 5), but there may be some things you can grow now there. Stuff your summer temperatures may be too warm for. Off the top of my head I can think of a few things that prefer cooler temps, but I'm not sure how cool is cool there. Peas, spinach, and brassicas (broccoli/cauliflower/cabbage family) tend to do better in cool weather. Those are things that bolt to seed here when it gets too hot in the summer (well peas tend to wilt instead). Carrots and some other root crops do better when it's cool too. Peas really like it cold, especially Sugar Snaps. I plant them as soon as the ground is thawed enough to dig without freezing my tushie off. They probably wouldn't do real well in the warmer months where you are. If you never get a hard freeze I bet you could grow lettuce year-round there and always have fresh salad available out of the garden.

A quick Google search for vegetable+planting+calendar turned up these sites:

http://www.bhg.com/bhg/story.jhtml?storyid=/templatedata/bhg/story/data/1140811364306.xml&catref=C429
http://sacramentogardening.com/vegetables.html (thought that one might be closer to what you're looking for)

A more extensive search including your state or region might get you better results. Finding some local resources will help you know what grows best in your area. There are many things I'd love to grow but they don't do well because the climate isn't right here.


My other, IMO most valuable, piece of advice for a newbie gardener is that compost is your friend. Don't be afraid to use it in generous quantity. I know that's not exactly what you were looking for, but make it a habit of adding compost to the garden and your soil will get better and better every year and so will your veggies.