GardenersCardiff answers:

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. Because you will need flowers for the sun areas, and flowers for the shaded areas.

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. And wildflowers are the hardest so don’t be disappointed if they don’t show up.

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 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
http://www.burpee.com

Other catalogs:
http://www.leevalley.com
http://www.gardeners.com
http://www.GardensAlive.com
http://www.deerbusters.com (all types of animal control)
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Container/pots/window boxes needs:

All need holes in the bottem for water drainage,
Potting soil that comes in bags,
Slow release fertilizer for flowers (not for green plants), 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.

Here is an excellent link to check out for color combinations and plants that look good together:

http://www.fernlea.com/awesomeaccents/recipes.html

GardenersCardiff answers:

Now will be a good time to start a compost heap. Collect as many fallen leaves as you can and pile them up in the area where you would like to plant your garden. You can add poultry droppings if you can find them, as well as any other vegetable matter that is no longer useful on the property. Make sure you start out with large brown materials that will allow air underneath the pile. Throw in all of your kitchen scraps, including tea bags, coffee grounds and filters, paper towels, etc. Make sure you bury the scraps deep enough in your leaves to prevent scavengers from smelling the garbage and digging it up. In the spring, you can find a new location for your aged compost, preferably in the location of your next vegetable bed. The ground underneath your compost will be fertile and ready for tilling. Add some of your aged compost, making sure you remove any large, recognizable vegetation that can be returned to your working compost pile.

For now, you can amend your soil compost and deodorized manure from the nursery to plant cool-weather plants, like lettuce, spinach, radishes, carrots, whatever is available in the nursery is likely appropriate for your growing area. Start reading seed packets and looking at websites from your county extension service to find the best varieties and sowing schedules. Enjoy!