Newbie, looking for planning advice

I am converting my smaller 12 X 12 traditional garden, that I would normally buy and plant transplants into 4, 4 X 4 square foot boxes.

I am in zone 6a and am looking for help regarding seeds vs, transplants, calendar for planting each to maximize the SFG. I am not picky about what I grow, I am more concerned with making the best of the sfg. Any help or planning ideas appreicated. The boxes will be built tomorrow so nothing has been planted yet.

Thank you

Hello, welcome, I am so happy for you!

Tomatoes I would definitely grow from transplants at this point. Lettuces, zucchini, scallions you can start from seed. Scallions are slow, but they don't seem to be particularly picky about temperature.

Carrots, radishes, beets will be okay, although it might be too hot for radishes. I am succession planting them and I'll see how they do during the hot part of the summer.

Green beans should be okay from seed.

Swiss chard, New Zealand spinach should be fine from seed. I have never seen or eaten New Zealand spinach, but it is much more heat tolerant than regular spinach, so I am giving it a try.

I think most herbs would need to be bought as transplants at this point, although it is highly possible that there are some slipping my mind right now.

I'd love to know more about you, your likes and dislikes (including shopping at nurseries/garden centers or not!) That way I won't run on and on about stuff in which you have no interest.

You still have plenty of time to plan your fall harvest also. Things like peas, lettuce, radishes can be grown again in the fall. Things like leeks can be planted in the fall too. I have some that didn't have time to grow to be large enough last fall, so they started right up again this spring. They were slimey and nasty looking, but I only had to peel back one layer, and they are gorgeous.

So after all this, I am re-reading your post, and you are an experienced gardener - only new to SFG. So, questions? Fire away!

Thanks for the reply. just finished building the gardens today. And I bought a few tomatos, carrots and a variety of lettuces etc.

Regarding my experience as a gardener I am very much the novice, but in my third year I decided to switch. Normally, I would just grow, basil, zuccs, squash, and that would be about it- and those would always be transplants that would be planted on the same day.. So I am really looking to 3 things with my frist year with the square foot garden. One grow from seed, have a greater variety of veggies and extend my growing season as long as possible. Any thoughts are welcome.

Thanks,
Sasithorn

well, addressing the last thing first - as far as extending the growing season as long as possible - that is one of my goals, too! So perhaps we can help each other. There are several approaches, assuming one is not going to get a heated greenhouse.

One of the first things, though, is that, because the SFG beds take so much less work than regular, I agree with Mel's book that come fall, we won't be burnt out, and we can put in the fall crops.

Do you like beets? Roasted golden beets are soooo delicious. Broccoli and cauliflower are good to grow in the fall. I am growing romanescu broccoli (or cauliflower, depending on whose catalog you choose to read!) I am growing it now basically for practice. I am not expecting success, since they don't like heat. But I figure I'll know more about it when I plant in the fall.

So, wider range of veggies - what do you have in mind? I'm thinking of what I have going, and I am realizing that I am being horribly mundane. I've got tomatoes, lettuces, scallions, leeks, peas, beans, all the standards. Hmmm, I am going to have to branch out.