I took the salesperson by surprise as I approached the garden center kiosk to pay for my plants. She had just bitten into her salad and the tomato in her mouth squirted a seed onto my flat of arugula.

I made a decision early in my food growing career: if I’m going to grow summer squash it will be gourmet varieties ONLY. Before you call me a vegetable snob, I’ll give you a great argument for this practice.