Starting Seeds Outdoors?

This is my first time gardening and I'm really hoping I don't screw everything up!

I have all my boxes built, but I'm confused about starting seeds inside or outside. I live in Zone 8, on the East Coast. We just had a freeze last night, but it's probably (hopefully) our last. I'm not really sure when the appropriate time is to plant everything!!!

Can I take the easy way out and plant my seeds directly outdoors?

Or should I start them inside?

I also have the added problem that we are having our backyard regraded, and I'm not sure exactly when this will happen. I don't want to put plywood on the bottom of my boxes. But if I'm going to start the seeds outdoors soon, I will probably need to use plywood so I can move my boxes around when our yard gets torn up. Or maybe I should start my seeds indoors and then move them outside when our yard gets done?

Any advice? Thank you!!!

Sherry

Certain seeds should be started indoors (tomatoe pepper basil etc.) others do not transplant well so they need to be direct sow in the garden plots (Cucumber eggplant beans corn etc.) Post up a list of what your veggie plans are so that others can post thier reccomendations for the seed planting

Here's my list:

Tomatoes (indoors)
Cucumbers (outdoors)
Lettuce
Zucchini
Squash (Yellow Crookneck)
Onions
Okra
Carrots

Thanks for the help!!!!!

Here's just one of many sites where you can look up your last frost date. Of course its approximate but it helps give you a good guideline. go here and click on your state and find your closest city to find a date to start. http://www.victoryseeds.com/frost/

In the back of Mel's book there are charts you can use, some cool loving crops can go in before your last frost date, like your lettuce. For example, My frost date is 4/25, but I'll be planting some lettuce today.

The reason to start plants indoors is for plants that take a long time until harvest. If you are in zone 8, I'm guessing you have a longer growing season than i do up here in NJ. I haven't grown all that stuff you have in your list, but carrots you should start outside, tomatoes are good to start indoors if you can, and I do onions indoors as well. Mel's book and also most seed packets will give you pointers about weather to start inside or not.

Happy harvesting and good luck. I'm sure you won't screw everything up, but don't get discouraged if you have a few bumps along the way.

From my experience (mind you im a not a master gardener) this is how i would look at that list if it were mine.

Tomatoe (indoors)
cucumber (direct sow)
lettuce (direct sow)
Zucchini (direct sow)
Sqaush (direct sow)
Onions (direct sow)
Okra (???)
Carrots (direct sow)

cucurbrits especialy do not like for the root system to be disturbed, Okra im not sure about because ive never grown it

All my comments are in red. I am zone 7b-8a and this problem is the one I've struggled with the most in converting my mental Nebraska planting dates to Texas planting dates. There's still just something that's somehow wrong with planting onions sets/slips in January.

@scbusf wrote:Here's my list:

Tomatoes (indoors) Late for zone 8 for seeds, just right for transplants. Start seeds indoors in mid-January.
Cucumbers (outdoors) Just right for outdoors.
Lettuce A little late, but you might have time for at least 1 round before the heat sets in.
Zucchini Just right for outdoors
Squash (Yellow Crookneck) Just right for outdoors
Onions Very late or very early for onions, but you can start bunching onions if you plan on them being in place forever and just pull what you want whenever. Onions are started by sets in January here or seed in fall.
Okra Just right for outdoors
Carrots A little late, but you might have time for at least 1 round before the heat sets in.

Thanks for the help!!!!!

Hope this helps you some. There are lots of planting charts available on-line and at local nurseries like North Haven Gardens (my favorite). These have helped me a lot getting back in the swing of veggie gardening and getting planting dates sorted out in my stubborn, old brain.

Sharon