Welcome!
I’m in a similar zone but I’m sure there are some significant differences in our growing conditions, little things like rainfall or wind or right now, 3” of sleet/ice/hail/snow on the ground. I don’t even know what to call that stuff out there right now except slick. Spring will come. Still zone 7A gives you a lot of options. Our northern neighbors have some advantages in cool weather crops and people further south have other advantages, but we have our own benefits. All gardening is local.
Sounds like you have experience but I’d still suggest starting fairly small. Don’t try to do everything at the start, especially if you recently moved. You may have some settling in to do with other things. Maybe instead of tackling all six raised beds this year, just plant a couple and get the others in shape over the summer for fall or next year. You can have a fall garden too. Don’t take on so much you burn out when you may be busy settling in.
Make a plan for those fruit trees and get them in the ground. Those take time to mature. The first year or two you’ll probably have to do a lot of watering until they get established. That can take more time than you’d think. That’s another reason to start a little slower in those raised beds. If you have much flexibility in where you can plant your orchard, you might want to do a perk test before you decide where to put it. It’s been years so I’m a bit rusty on the details but you dig a hole maybe 3’ deep and fill it with water. How fast it drains gives you an idea of how much you’ll have to water trees even after they are established.
You’ve hit the right forum if you want gardeners that keep chickens. Most of us have them. Which reminds me, plan where you want your compost pile and decide how you are going to do that. There are a lot of different ways to even do that. Then get started. That’s something else that takes time. You may even have to water it. I do. But that stuff is considered black gold. If you hang around, we’ll have you composting.
You might want to pay a visit to your county extension agent. You should be able to find them in the phone book under county government or online. They probably have a lot pf pamphlets that tell you how to grow certain things. Here those are free. One that helped me was a calendar that told me when to start different things. That also told me what grows well here. Also, chat with them about getting a soils analysis. Here even that is free but I don’t know how California handles that. With a soils analysis you have a much better idea of what is in your soil and can amend it much better. pH is real important too.
Probably enough for a Wednesday morning. I’m sure others will have a lot to add. Have a good one and again
.
