My mother's parents used to grow cut flowers on a small scale during the depression for extra cash. My mother introduced me to gardening, I used to accompany her on all the trips to nurseries. She gave me a small section of the garden, I realized later it was because she could see no use for it been the shadiest, driest part of the yard and she purchased the plants for me to grow there, such as gourds, none of which were suited to the location. Around the time I was ten she became furious with me for my attempts to sort out and attempt to make crosses of her various bearded irises. Oddly, when I started my nursery she said she was surprised as I had never exhibited any interest in plants and gardening. It is hard to say what my first plant was, I have always tended to have eclectic tastes and have grown, or tried to, just about anything I could try. Randy Monterey Bay Area, California