Here are some beginner's guides. Have fun.

I got some very good advice here - not specifically about veggies, but I do intend to plant some.

Plant things you'll eat. It sounds stupid, but I know someone with a beetroot glut who hates beetroot. I have NO idea why he planted them. I guess they just looked good.

When I was a kid we used to grow a small patch of berries, pumpkins, and carrots for a few years. It's actually pretty easy - plant the seeds in good soil in the right season (depending on your zone), weed the area diligently (which was hard when the carrots started sprouting - I remember pulling up lots of carrots accidentally), harvest when they look edible. Everything else (pest control, watering, etc) we sort of figured out as we went.

It's easier than you can believe. It's harder than you could have ever thought.

Really, it's somewhere in between.

Where do you live? You've got the plot already, so the really hard part is done. Basically, there are two types of veggies: those that like a cooler growing season and those that want sun sun sun sun sun sun sun sun sun sun sun.

Make a list of the veggies you want, the basic size of your plot, and your location, and I'd be happy to give you some tips.

You might like this link to Asparagirl's ABC of Victory Gardens.

If you till it every year, CF, you're 75% of the way there. The biggest ass pain is getting the soil prepped. Yours will at least be loose and somewhat fluffy.

First off, has it been tilled this year? If so, what got tilled into it? Was there a bunch of organic matter? (Weeds, ground cover, plants?) If so, you can probably proceed to step two. If not, you might consider buying a few bags of compost, spreading those over the soil, and tilling them in. After tilling, rake the bed level. Now you can start planting.

(It's not a great idea to till TOO often, as it can break up the soil structure and disturb the fauna living down there, so don't do it this spring unless you need to.)

It looks like you're in USDA zone 6a (though I'm also finding that you could range from 5b to 7a). That will be helpful to know in deciding when to plant what.

Here's a planting calendar for your neck of the woods. Decide what you want to grow, then look at when seeds or plants should go in the ground.

Plants WANT to grow. Keep that in mind. Yes, some plants have particular needs and wants, but for the most part, if you give them good soil, good drainage, good sun, and an appropriate amount of water, you'll be okay.

Now go get started, then come back with specific questions when they come up!

Make a list of the veggies you want, the basic size of your plot, and your location, and I'd be happy to give you some tips.
Mudpuppie's got my location (with a growing calendar? You are too good), RI.

Plants I'd eat/want to grow?
Corn. Lettuce. Tomatoes. Squash/zucchini. Cucumbers. Eggplant.

I've tried doing lettuce before, and it's always come out very very tiny and crappy. Tomatoes usually stink, but last year (my mom grew some), I think because we had a lot of rain, which kept most of the bugs away, they turned out pretty ok.

If there's anything else you'd recommend that's easy to grow--like I'd have to try REALLY HARD to make it not grow--feel free to recommend it.

As far as the soil goes, we till it once every year, I think usually in the spring? Late spring, very early summmer? Not sure. Some lawn clippings go in there, I think, and we typically let weeds and stuff grow to some extent and those get tilled in there.

We used to have a compost pile/can/something-compost-related, don't know why we stopped (I think it all just got to be to much hassle for my dad). I'd love to start doing it again but I think my dad has generally washed his hands of the whole thing. Though, knowing him, if I start trying to do it this year his "no, let me show you the right way to do it" instincts will get the better of him. ;)

I'll try and get some dimensions of the plot later today, if you guys really need them, but suffice it to say I think I'd have a VERY hard time using up all the space the plot has to offer. It's very long and takes up a sizeable portion of the backyard.

Where did my comment go? :(

Guess I didn't actually hit post. How frustrating. To start over now....

I've tried doing lettuce before, and it's always come out very very tiny and crappy.

Head lettuces can be hard. I've never had much luck with them (except for this year's crop of butter lettuce; but then, we actually planted it early enough this time, so there you go). Leaf lettuces are much easier. Early bolting can sometimes be a problem. Arugula is another option that's tasty and very easy to grow.

Tomatoes usually stink, but last year (my mom grew some), I think because we had a lot of rain, which kept most of the bugs away, they turned out pretty ok.

You'll need to find varieties that are suitable for your shorter, relatively cooler (and wetter?) season. Stupice is the only one I know, because I don't really deal much with short and cool. There are others, though. I bet Miko would have some suggestions, since y'all are in the same corner of the globe.

If there's anything else you'd recommend that's easy to grow--like I'd have to try REALLY HARD to make it not grow--feel free to recommend it.

The very easiest of all is radishes. Plus, they're fast -- you can start picking about 3 weeks after they're planted. Lots of cool varieties now, too. Plant new seeds every week for a continual harvest.

Peas are pretty easy, too, except that some varieties are disease-prone. Get some mildew- and disease-resistant pole sugar snaps and build yourself a cool-looking trellis. Yum!

Mudpuppie I need you to come here for a minute so I can hug you.
HOORAY ADVICE. Thanks everyone!

Now I just need to get things down like spacing and "irrigation" and things like that.
I have a good feeling about this.

As for spacing, there will be guidelines on the back of any seed packet. I usually plant plants closer than they say to, because I get panicky that I'll run out of space. Plus, greed.

Irrigation is a whole 'nother question. If you don't want to set up a drip system (which would be cool, but would involve at least some investment of time and money), you'll do well with a couple of soaker hoses. They're the same size as regular garden hoses, but they're porous. You attach the garden hose to them, turn on the water, and let them run for X amount of time. Just lay them along your rows of plants.

With tomatoes especially, this is the best way to go -- tomatoes like deep, infrequent waterings. (In fact, it's best to let your tomatoes have their own hose, because their needs are just different from other plants'.)

Soaker hoses have at least three major benefits over standing there, spraying your garden with a nozzle. First, they save a lot of water. Second, the water goes directly into the soil, where it's needed, and not on the leaves of the plants, where it can cause diseases. And finally, it's much less labor intensive. Turn on the water, go have a beer, and then turn the water off again.

mildew- and disease-resistant pole sugar snaps

Oh, and to clarify that which I typed earlier: There are 'pole' type peas and 'bush' type. (Same for beans.) Pole peas/beans grow tall and need to be staked or trellised. Bush beans don't grow more than knee-high.

I always grow pole type because they take up less space. I always think of them as more productive, too, though everything I read tells me that's not necessarily so. It's just a preconception I can't get rid of. (I mean, come on! They're 5 or 6 feet tall! They've GOT to produce more!)

Here's an article I found that rates varieties of peas. A bush type was the winner.

You'll also read that peas need to be inoculated before you plant them, but I never do it. The way I see it, that's just an effort to get me to buy an expensive container of pea inoculant that I'll end up using a tablespoon of.

OK. I tried corn last year for the first time and learned my lesson the hard way. I will pass it on to you. Make sure that you plant the corn in blocks rather than one long row. You know all that corn silk? Well, each strand corresponds to a kernel, and each strand must be fertilized. Planting the corn in a row makes it hard for that to happen. So rather than one row of 12 plants, do a 3x4 block.

Being in zone 6a, you'll be able to grow lettuces for longer than I can down here in 7b. I had great luck with romaine last year. I planted a long row with the seeds close together and harvested by thinning. So at first it was tiny leaves only, but by the end I had a few excellent heads. Which I then neglected until they bolted. Dammit. But that was entirely my bad.

Pest control: I have two main weapons in my arsenal, Dipel and insecticidal oil. The Dipel gets worms and the oil gets flies and aphids. Dipel is good for tomato hornworms (possibly the most disgusting pest in a garden, imo), as well as worms that tend to attack greens.


Have FUN!