White House Gets a Little Greener Thanks to a New Veggie Garden

The White House is a symbol of this country’s strength and power as it’s the central nervous system of the nation. What would be more symbolic in today’s green movement than to have a sustainable and all natural vegetable garden on these grounds? Displaying a productive and efficient resource for food in this hub of power would demonstrate that this is the definite direction the country is going in. First Lady Michelle Obama jumped at this idea as she made a landmark change to this capital landmark.

“I want to make sure that our family, as well as the staff and all the people who come to the White House and eat our food, get access to really fresh vegetables and fruits,” Obama said.

Mrs. Obama is looking to provide a healthy, fresh, tasty, and sustainable resource of vegetables and herbs including spinach, peas, squash, fennel, and possibly berries and mint in the future. Using her celebrity and power for good—she hopes to inspire Americans to hop aboard the new modern lifestyle as being not only environmentally friendly but also providing a solution to the nation’s ongoing battle with obesity.

Gardening in pure first lady fashion, Michelle, donned in pink pants, a striped tank top, and a matching floral cardigan, teamed up with a local elementary school to help her harvest the newly sprouted vegetables this week. Over 90 pounds of produce have been collected not including the immense amount of herbs harvested as well. So far, the garden has proven to be quite the success as rainy weather and weekly weed management, along with a fortunate lack of interest from the Obama’s dog, Bo, has allowed the garden to flourish.

In order to show that harvesting your own vegetables can not only be fun but also delicious, the first lady hosted a small cooking lesson followed by an outdoor picnic to give her elementary school gardeners a gift for all their hard work. Mrs. Obama took a knife to the newly picked lettuce demonstrating to the kids how simple and delicious it is to prepare your own fresh salad as they decorated cupcakes with berries (a healthier alternative to frosting).

So what’s next for the White House (or should we now say the Green House)?

Mrs. Obama is now looking into making her own honey by housing her own beehive on the White House grounds, “My kids aren’t very excited about the beehive,” she said. “But we’re going to try to make our own honey here.”

Whether Michelle Obama is harvesting spinach or monitoring her beehive, she will always be promoting community values, healthier alternatives, and greener practices—now that’s what we want to see as the symbol for America.

Thirsty for more? Check out these related articles:

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3. What is a Zero Energy House?
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2 Responses to “White House Gets a Little Greener Thanks to a New Veggie Garden”

1. mackenzie wood says:

   June 25, 2009 at 4:12 pm

   Check out the article on Down to Earth about community gardens and how they are helping people all over the US
2. Eva Marie says:

   June 25, 2009 at 4:15 pm

   I just found this website called Green Cup Boards that sells eco-friendly products and certifies brands that are truly green on their website. I would recommend checking it out. And they are having a “specials” sale right now on green products!