Originally Posted by simy1

betsey wrote:

planting season...spring/summer...harvest-summer/fall. soil is top
soil with a clay base...yes, i know, it needs amending!

i'm just not sure i want to get into starting indoors and then
transplanting...

betsey

There are many veggies that are best direct seeded. Beets, carrots
(though I
would wait on the carrots until after two or three years, when your
soil will be
lighter - if you keep amending it), chard, beans and peas of all sorts,
favas, kale,
garlic (if your soil is not too wet, to be sure make it a slightly
raised bed),
potatoes, lettuce, most smaller greens (arugula, tatsoi, mache) ,
onions (same
considerations as carrots), all manners of chicory. If this list is
insufficient,
I could think of others. Basically, anything with a taproot, anything
small, and
most things large-seeded.

You could have two crops if you manage it well, as I do from most of my
garden,
all from direct seeding, if you are in full sun and have an average NJ
summer. If
you can cover with a hoophouse, you could direct seed even the summer
vegetables (zucchini,cukes, tomato, melons) one month ahead of the
regular
schedule. In fact, in the old days everything was direct seeded. I use
transplants
only in conjunction with mulch, so that weeding is eliminated. If you
plan to leave
your soil bare, I see no reason to fumble with dirty pots in March
inside the house.