Hi everyone. Have some questions. I never had a garden before so I am garden stupid.
I live in Pennsylvania I think that is zone 5b (i think)
How do I know when to start planting my stuff in the house before it goes outside. Here is what I am going to try and grow.

Beefstake tomatoes
Large cherry tomatoes
Sweet Spanish Yellow Utah Jumbo Onions and
Forono red beets.

Can someone help me by giving me an idea of when I should start these in the house?

I have no idea of even when I should have my garden rototilled.

Like today its 27 degrees outside.
Is there help for me out there??

During this garden preperation I will probably end up having some very stupid questions but I am very enthusiastic about starting this garden and my 6 and 9 year old can't wait.

Have a great day......

You're in zone 6 being in Dover, PA. Not sure about onions or beets, but Tomatoes can be started from seed 6-8 weeks before your area's average last frost date. Of course that depends on how much room you have for seedlings. Yu can turn the soil over as soon as it thaws.

There is no such thing as a stupid question.

We were ALL new gardeners once.

Oh yeah, start the beets and onions now, in the garden. You may want to buy onion starts unless you just want green onions. Onion from seed takes a very long time to produce bulb onions...It could be next season before you have large onions from seed. Beets can be sown again in mid to late summer for fall and winter harvest in your area.

Welcome to gardening. I'm sure it will become as rewarding of a hobby for you as it is for me and many others here on the site.

I have a friend in Penn. we were discussing spreading fert, or compost, or whatever, over the ice near thawing time. Any info on that? If it matters? he's gonna be out of town and we thought it may help "water in"??

Bill, I'm not sure exactly what your question is. I guess if you spread compost in a thin layer over ice, it might help absorb heat from the sun and melt the ice a little faster, but a thick layer could insulate it and keep it from thawing...

Starting tomatoes inside.........I have cherry and beefsteak and early girl tomatoes grown from seed........about 18 inches tall now. Started end of February.
yes you need extra room to start it early. Onion sets , you start soon as the soil can be worked. I am western Pa. and it is probably cooler here.
My Opinion, is start SMALL........ You will learn faster.

dodge

That is great advice. I wish I could be content to keep my garden small! I always overplant.

Werd!

John, do you mean, "Word," like the kids say? Like, "right on!"
Or do you mean, "weird!" Which I am!

Hi Cougargirl 50,
I live north of you in Toronto canada I put my Onion Seeds in last Feb in the basement under lights.When they get too big I trim them down to about 4ins.It does them no harm.After I've hardened them off I will plant them outside, about the middle of May
Dave

Hey All,

Welcome to the forum John!!

Bill said: Bill, I have seen my dad sprinkle Bermuda grass seed, Mustard Green seed, and Turnip green seed on top of snow that we got just before the end of winter. When the show thawed out, the seed were sucked in or as you put it, "watered in!" I thought that was as neat as a pocket on a shirt!! I asked him one time about spreading lime or fertilizer in the same manner and he said that he didn't think it work well. His reasoning was that the fertilizer and lime needed to be tilled into the soil in order to be evenly effective.


John said: John, I always try to make sure my garden is tilled well in the later part of the fall. That way, if I have any leaves, grass clippings, or compost to add to it, it all has plenty of time to decompose before spring planting time.

The spot where you will plant onions, garlic, broccoli, cauliflower, and other cool weather plants should be worked just as soon as the ground had thawed out and dried a bit. It doesn't have to completely dry out, but working it when it is too wet will cause the soil to form clumps that will become stone hard when they dry out. I've also found that working the garden when it is too wet can actually cause a hard "pan" to develop underneath the surface. And, it's a booooooger to break through with a tiller.

I'm with Amigatech... there is no such thing as a stupid or dumb question. My grandmother used to say, "the only stupid question is the one that isn't asked!!"

There are some very VERY good and friendly people here at GH. Regardless of our current levels of experience, we all had to start somewhere!!!

It tickles me pink to see people in this day and time who are wanting to learn to grow something. It's fun, therapeutic, and if you grow the right stuff... it tastes good too!!

One last thing..... since you are so new to gardening/growing, you might try looking around to see if you can find someone close to you who has experience with gardening. In my 46 years of life, I've only run into a handful of experienced gardeners who wouldn't eagerly share their gardening knowledge with a newbie. If you find someone with experience, don't be afraid to pick his/her brain!! And, if you don't understand something, don't be afraid to ask them to 'splain it to ya!!!

Good luck with your new endeavor.

Robert

BTW--Start your tomatoes about 6 to 8 weeks before your last frost date. If you don't know when your last frost date is, try calling your local county's Agricultural Extension Agent's office and ask them. They should know or be able to find out for you. Bee Good!!!!