veg patch virgin help

[cheesesarnie]

the dc and i planted some seeds and theyre now desperatly needing to be removed from pots and planted outside(i think!).i need help with everything!where in garden to put them-shady/sunny?,how to dig/prepare veg patch?etc etc.i am complete beginner!we have tomatoes,sweetcorn,lettuce,red peppers.

help please!!!!!

All your plants except lettuce like a sunny spot. The lettuce will probably do best in a half sunny place, but would be OK in sun too. The sweetcorn is best planted in a block - eg. if you have 16 plants plant them in a 4x4 square as this will help them pollinate better.
Tomatoes will probably need a stick to grow up (depends on variety though), the peppers will probably manage without.

Prepare the ground by digging it over, and removing the weeds. Add some extra compost/ well rotted manure if you have it. Plant the plans in holes the same depth as the pots they are in so the soil level stays the same.

Toms about 12-18" apart, peppers about 12" apart, sweetcorn about 12" apart and lettuce 6-8" apart. If you have the seeds packets still look at those as the exact distance apart depends on variety.

And watch out for slugs and snails! My pepper plants have beenr educed to stumps by greedy snails.

thankyou!!!how exciting!i think dh chucked the packets!.so i dont need one of those plastic greenhouses?manure is very easy to get hold of round here.
what do i use to keep away slugs and snails that are safe for the children and local cats that like to poo in my garden?

I use the blue organic kind after having tried a massive amount of other things i.e. beer traps etc. Good luck - slugs are hell!

where do i buy them?

I think the organic slug pellets can be bought from one of the organic gardening websites - Green Gardener, maybe?

I've got a plastic greenhouse. It's fabulous in the spring for raising seeds (I don't have enough windowsills indoors) and it'd probably be good for things like melons which don't grow well outdoors in the UK, but all the things you've mentioned should do fine now in open ground or in pots outside.

There are lots of gardening websites, so if you're stuck for ideas get Googling - or come back here, of course!

thankyou!