There was no one vegetable that turned me on to gardening. Rather, it was
the purchase of a home with a very large yard, at the time I had three
little kids and the memories of my parents growing a lot of our own food on
a little farm in Oregon when I was a kid. I started out with some basics
that didn't do well in our clayey soil (onions, carrots), and a few that did
very well (tomatoes, peppers), and sort of went fro there, expanding each
year. Five years and one more child later, I now feel it's my obligation as
a parent to provide my kids with the best foods I possibly can. (Plus, the
cool distinction of having found ways to grow amazing amounts of food in
this terrible soil!)
--S.