Another newbie with start up questions

[andyrpanda]

Hi!* I'm Andy and I'm a gardening virgin.* My main goal is to be able to provide my family with much cheaper produce than having to buy it from the store.* I have a ton of questions and since our home was new construction, just built last year I'm literally starting from scratch.

1) does anyone know where to get more local info, like what grows well where?* I'm in Georgia, North of Atlanta.* Or could I just grow anything I want??

2) can I start growing now or will I likely have to wait a year or two and be composting and mulching first.* Our house was built on the Georgia red clay, so I have no clue how condusive that is to planting.* Right now in the spots I'm going to start the gardens in there's just year-old pine straw down on top of the dirt.* no grass there even since the sod wasn't laid there.

3) What are some good sources to buy seeds, fruit trees, berry bushes, etc from.* B&M or online are fine.

ok, I think that's about it for now.* Any other info you can share would be awesome, but I realize how hard it is to answer open ended questions like that on such broad topics.

thanks in advance!

[backyardgardener]

Some links to start out on...

http://www.georgiagardening.com/imag...ionreports.pdf

Talk to your local Mater Gardener.....
http://www.hort.uga.edu/extension/ma.../mastgard.html

Veggies
http://pubs.caes.uga.edu/caespubs/pubcd/L174.htm

Red Clay
http://forums.gardenweb.com/forums/l...511716219.html
http://forums.gardenweb.com/forums/l...154832217.html


Bottomline... you need to add compost to your soil... lots

[Newt]

Hi Andy,

Some great links from Backyard Gardener.* As to your question about starting now or having to wait:* You can start this year, but add at least 4" of compost to the planting beds and mix it in.* You can start your own compost piles to use next year, but you can purchase it in bulk or by the bag now.* Here's a compost calculator.
http://www.cedar-grove.com/calculator.asp

You can also use the lasagna compost method over the winter for next year.
http://www.motherearthnews.com/Organ...Gardening.aspx

For purchasing seeds and plant material you can search here and check references.* You can also look for local mailorder by state.
http://davesgarden.com/products/gwd/

Be sure to read through other posts here as there are other good links too.* Oh, and welcome to the wonderful world of gardening!

Newt