Americans planning on using their gardens and greenhouses to grow their own organic vegetables have been given some handy hints in the Huffington Post.
It suggested starting out small and slow and building up your arsenal of varieties over time as your knowledge develops.
A ten by 16-ft plot is ideal for beginners and should be located in a sunny spot to ensure the plants get as much light as possible.
When it comes to choosing what to grow, gardeners should aim to keep vegetables of similar pH levels together, while research into companion planting will reveal that carrots and tomatoes work well together.
The newspaper advised that beginners should only need basic tools in order to achieve success, with gloves, a pair of old shoes, a shovel, trowel, steel rake and containers all being useful items.
It quoted the BackyardGardener in suggesting that the most important elements when growing food are sunshine and water.
High-quality organic soil, eight hours of sunlight and a good level of hydration should have growers on their way to a successful vegetable patch.
Meanwhile, TCPalm.com recently gave Floridian gardeners advice on reducing the level of damage caused by slugs.