How best to start a vegetable plot

Lynn We have always grown tomatoes and strawberries in grow bags and pots, but this year, I picked up a couple of books at charity shops (much cheaper) on vegetable growing, and they do have some useful tips on growing in containers and pots. We also turned a part of our garden into a veg patch and we have been surprised at what we have grown. I always remember being told to plant Marigolds in amongst runner beans to keep green and black fly down and it seems to work

Can anyone recomend a book to guide me on planting veg etc in pots, I would like to try but am a complete beginner. This year I tried strawberries and only got one off each plant; and tomatoes, i did get a few but the pots kept falling over. some of the flowers planted did a little better but not much. It can't be that hard so will have another go this year.

does anybody knows are there any vegetables or fruits that can be grown in a shady garden?

With regards to the comment by Helen R about sowing seeds in old toilet roll tubes. BEWARE!! A few years ago I did just that with my early crop of sweetcorn and I had to resow them and I know that the seeds and compost that I used was AOK as I also sowed some in plastic pots as I did not have enough old toilet roll tubes available and all of the seeds sown in the pots germinated successfully.I think that the cardboard that the tubes are made from may contain some residual chemicals from the manufacturing process. Other friends have also reported variable germination using these tubes Personally I would never use them again.

Start seeds off by filling toilet roll tubes with soil and planting one or 2 seeds in each. The whole tube can be planted out as the cardboard rots down in the soil.

We plant out courgettes in buckets, one per bucket, half a dozen plants can keep our family of four all through the summer. Around the edge of the buckets plant 3 or 4 runner or french beans and bamboo canes for them to grow up. Squirt WD40 or similar around the outside edge of the bucket or plant pot to stop the slugs climbing up to your plants. Potaoes grown in plastic dustbins allow you to plant in about 2 foot of soil then as they grow keep adding more soil to prevent the tubers turning green.
We also have a collection of peppers planted in pots on the porch window cill and are eagerly awaiting fruit on them.
Next year a portion of lawn is being lifted to create a proper veg plot for carrots, parsnips, beetroots etc. like we used to grow in our old house. After the initial hard dig it doesn't take lots of time to keep it ticking over, just a little weeding and watering every day, oh and a good friend to watch over it when you go on holiday.