You asked how I have learned. The sorry truth is I am old and have been gardening for ages. Living in the same house for 30 years my garden/yard has seen many transformations.
I also read and participate in lots of gardening forums and through the ages have read and collected gardening books. I also consider myself an amateur. I started out with traditional gardening, then went on to doing the double dig method, but will never do more than mulch, mulch, mulch now. Cardboard is one of the best mulches for starting new beds and will make what mulch you have go really far.
Here is a YouTube article on Ruth Stout
. If you aren't familiar with her methods you might want to take a peek. And another written article on her.
http://www.motherearthnews.com/organic-gardening/ruth-stouts-system.aspx#axzz2cYAvGTSO
For seeds you might want to go with open pollinated varieties that you can save seeds from. There are a lot out there. I use Territorial Seeds and always love browsing Seed Savers Exchange. I have found that seeds I have saved for myself have gotten better for my location after only a few seasons.
Good luck with your garden and trust yourself. Nature has a way of giving us the best and the worst so don't get discouraged. I figure nature is just teaching me to go with the flow.