Hello - don't be shy, cabbagepatchkid! You'll be a "pro" next year too for any newbies.
When we started, the old guys were only too happy to help us anyway they could - looking back, it was actually in their interest to make sure that us newbies didn't get discouraged by the hard work of the first year and give up.
So we got lots of advice (NOT that we followed it all! - to be honest, it got rather too much). But - the really pleasant bit - we did some things they thought were VERY strange; and if our way appeared to work, the biggest advice givers were the first to come and ask our advice.
And they were VERY generous in sharing whatever they were harvesting. It was a real morale boost for my kids to be given vegetables, and later to share their harvest.
One bit of advice I did follow, though - "don't try double digging the whole plot!!!!!!!" It is VERY hard work - but worth doing on each bed, perhaps every 5 or 6 years. How I do it? Have a look at http://www.keirg.freeserve.co.uk/diary/tech/digging.htm.
The idea behind it is two-fold ---- deepen your fertile top-soil (the deeper the root run, the better for most plants); adding manure or compost so deep also serves as a moisture reservoir for the dry summer.
Good luck with your first year - Gavin.
