Don Small, age 8, of Vancouver, Wash., for his question:

IS CAULIFLOWER REALLY GOOD FOR YOU?

Cauliflower is a garden vegetable that is grown for its head of tightly clustered flowers and its fleshy stem. It is indeed good for you. It provides large amounts of vitamin C and sulfur and smaller amounts of vitamin A and phosphorus.

The plant is usually grown from seed in a hotbed or greenhouse. Then, the plants are transplanted to the field. Most growers tie the large leaves around the head while it is growing to keep the flowers white.

Cauliflower grows best in cool, moist weather such as that found in some of the Pacific Coast states. Cauliflower is also grown in Southern states during the late fall and winter.

Leading cauliflower producing states include California, Colorado, Florida, Michigan, Oregon and Texas.

Cauliflower actually belongs to the mustard family.

The vegetable may be cooked, pickled or eaten raw. It has been cultivated and eaten for many hundreds of years.