Vegetables bring lots of $/acre. That makes them very popular in Appalachia, where farmable land tends to be in very small patches.
You can make a living on veggies on a small plot* where nothing else would bring enough revenue to pay bills.
*with the right experience & preparation, because nothing in ag is a given. but it *can* work on a small plot, unlike commodity corn & soy which definitely won't pay bills on small plots.