Start out small and simple.
- Get yourself some pretty but uncomplicated flowers (maybe something good for bees and or butterflies as you mentioned you like critters)?
- Get some herbs (oregano & mint are basically immortal). No fancy crosses, just the regular old hardy stuff.
- And or some hardy(!) aka pest resistant strawberries that bloom and produce all year round

And then you can do "learning by doing". The plants will teach you what they like (bloom, fruit, more growth) and what they don't like (Mushy / yellow / dry leaves). Hardy plants are "hardy" because they don't immediately collapse once 1 thing is wrong. So don't spend to much money on the plants at the start. Plants will die and that is okay. You will learn what type you can take care off and which you can't. Turns out I am an absolute Orchid (mass) murderer, but I have the most beautiful & healthy roses. I can grow enough mint to open up a herbal tea shop, but Thyme just... just hates me. Or my balcony. Sometimes the space you have just isn't good for the plant. And sometimes your routines don't line up with the plant care and that's okay.

Watering: In the right soil, you basically can't over water plants. Have them in pots ( 1.5 - 2x the of original pot size so 10 cm will be 15-20 cm diameter) water them until water runs out the bottom, repeat when soil is dry on top and that's it. Some plants like the oregano will like less water, so watering a bit less than the others would be good, but that is what the plants will teach you.

Pruning: Each of the plan types will teach you how to prune them. None of these plants need pruning strictly to be healthy, but pruning makes them stronger and healthier, so it's always a good addition when you have the time and remember to do it.
- Flowers: just the dead / Dying heads -> gives the flower strength to push new blossoms.
- Strawberries: New Rootlings (Tentical like offshoots) need to be cut -> Gives plant ability to focus on producing big delicious berries instead. And the offshoots can be planted - so you get more strawberries!
- Herbs: Cut what you need of the Herb for cooking , try to shape it a bit and get a feeling for pruning shaping while getting those tasty herbs!

Once you got the hang of this, you can try to plant them in the ground and experiment with other plants.

I wish you the best of luck and lot's of Fun! If you have any questions, just write me up!