The problems depend on the type of soil, your location, the garden's location, and the specific crop(s). You've got to give more details if you want more helpful answers. Where about are you located (nothing specific, just a general location)? What type of soil do you have? How big do you want the garden? How much sun does it get? Is the area well drained? What do you plan on growing? Will you be starting from seed or buying transplants? Etc, etc, etc. Rodney P.S. There is a ton of information on the forum already that may be of interest.

NoviceMonkey - I would suggest you look over on the Vegetable Forum for general advice on growing. It is more lively and frequented than this one. While reading materials such as that recommended by Natures_Nature might be interesting, you say you are already overwhelmed and intimidated, so I'm not sure it would help. There are a lot of people on Garden Web who are very keen gardeners but who do have a tendency to make it all far more complicated than need be and who all have their own ideas of what you must do. Firstly, I would make sure you find advice specifically for your area. Secondly, I would start small - and you are, 10 x 5 is easy to maintain. And the word maintain is very important. Many newbies start off very enthusiastically, spend a lot of money, plant their plants and then hope to come back 2 or 3 months later and harvest fabulous veggies. You need to keep at it regularly - little and often. Watch for pests - but don't stress about a bit of damage. Keep on top of weeds. Get the watering sorted out. Thirdly, I would try not to grow everything you fancy the first year. Begin with a few of the easier varieties for your area. Fourthly, unless you live somewhere with absolutely awful soil I would incorporate what is already there in your garden. It is not a sine qua non of gardening that you need to buy lots of stuff to build beds. Please don't be frightened off. Just get started - when the season is appropriate. Here is a link that might be useful: Vegetable Forum

Thank you for the good advice. It has given me some new things to consider before I continue. As far as hybridizing goals, my initial goal is fairly simple - I just want to see if I can do it. My ultimate goal? Once I was sitting at a conference where every desk had an open laptop on it. I was getting bored, so I went over to ebay and typed in "Daylilies - completed auctions - highest priced first.:" WOW! I saw dayliles that made my jaw drop. One was large, frilly, shades of purple/magenta with a chartreuse center and may have had the word "Leprechaun" in the cultivar name. A few farther down, I saw a bright red one, with a yellow/cream center and it may have had the name "China" or "Chinese" in the cultivar name. That was a few years ago, so I may never run across those particular culitvars again, but it certainly made me want to learn more about them. Years ago, I bought a purple/lavendar (I don't know the proper color terms) daylily called "Chicago Queen," and since then, I've favored the red/pink/purples. This is strange, because what I am growing now are pastel yellows, darker yellows and apricots (not on same property as my new flower beds. I like the frilly stuff, the thick petals, the ruffled edges, the doubles, the bicolors, etc, and at this point in time are not interested in UFO, spider, pastels, small blooms - maybe later. I will be looking at the sites you suggested and doing some more reading. A few quick, and I hope not dumb, questions: 1. As a beginner can I jump right into buying tetraploid lilies, or should I buy diploid first, or should I learn by working with both? (no money I spend on plants is wasted, since can I buy/grow what I want, and then later, if I tire of it, I can move it to a commercial property where they are enjoyed by the public.) 2. Is there a reason I should be looking at award winners to start out with? 3. Being a zone 5, should I buy now and in autumn, or should I wait till spring? The new flower beds are protected by buidlings or the woods, so extreme temps shouldn't be a problem. Thanks again for your thoughtful advice. Off topic, but you want to see my big pumpkin? Here is a link that might be useful:

Welcome! You're going to have a fun time :) Without getting too complicated (there are plenty of books for that) here's what I would do: Full sun spot, close to water source. If grass grows well there, veggies should too. Raised bed is a good idea. Even if you screw a few pieces of lumber together that should do the trick, but a kit is also a good start if you don't mind spending the money. Soil is important. A raised bed will need to be filled and this could be costly if you buy bags of soil. You might want to ask more questions on this depending on what you're thinking. Topsoil from elsewhere in the yard, topsoil delivered, potting soil bought in bags..... Don't overdo it the first year. Once frosts are past buy some tomato transplants (4 or less), pepper transplants and plant them. But a packet of zucchini seeds and cucumber seeds and try them, they're so easy! Get a pack of bean seeds (get a bush type, not pole beans) they're also easy. Then pick something else to experiment with..... There's a start and a couple of things to think about, I'm sure others will add on! Enjoy