First Garden

The kitchen staff harvested the first vegetables from the White House garden, including oak leaf lettuce, red romaine, speckled lettuce, fennel and rhubarb last week. That evening President Obama and his economic advisers, dined on "White House kitchen garden salad with spiced Marcona almonds and lemon tarragon vinaigrette" which included lettuces and fennel fresh from the garden. In the Navy Mess, the administration staff enjoyed a garden thyme garnish and three types of lettuce. The kitchen staff was "thrilled to use produce from the White House kitchen garden," said White House executive chef Cristeta Comerford. "It is so exciting to see our efforts turn into usable goods.” The White House donated the rhubarb to Miriam's Kitchen who provides healthy homemade meals to the homeless in Washington D.C. Miriam's will use it to make a strawberry-rhubarb sauce for the mini cheesecakes it is serving at 100 Bowls of Compassion, its annual gala. In the future the bulk of the produce donated to Miriam's will be used for client meals.

Feeling motivated by the White House garden's delicious harvest? Start planning your own garden today. My husband planted some pineapples this weekend in our yard and I worked on planning our fall garden. Need some inspiration for your garden - check out www.organicgardening.com

White House Garden

On Friday, March 20th, 2009, 23 third graders joined First Lady Michelle Obama on the South Lawn of the White House to break ground on an 1100 square foot kitchen garden that will provide organic produce for the first family and for world leaders and guests at formal dinners. In an effort to lead by example and to encourage others to plant a garden, the garden is being planted so it is visible from the street. A food garden was last planted on the White House lawn in 1943 by Eleanor Rossevelt during a time in our country's history similar to our current struggles - the economy was weak and the country was at war. According to the New York Times, the garden will have 55 varieties of vegetables grown from organic seedlings started at the executive mansion’s greenhouses. Michelle Obama says the garden will be a family affair with everyone helping out including the president.

Eat the View

Now is the time for change and let's encourage Obama to start at home by planting an organic garden at the White House.

A vegetable garden at the White House is not a new idea, John Adams planted a garden during his presidency. During World War II, First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt planted a Victory Garden on the White House lawn. With her support, the Victory Garden program grew to nearly 20 million Victory Gardens across the U.S., producing 40% of all the country's vegetables. The program was encouraged through gardening handbooks, rallies, recipe contests, and media support.

President Obama has brought hope to many in this nation and across the globe and while we all bask in the honeymoon phase of his presidency, hopefully he will take advantage of this special time to inspire everyone to make changes to help our country recover from our economic crisis.

So start planning your own organic garden and encourage President Obama to plant the First Lawn with organic vegetables for the White House and local food pantries by signing the petition at www.eattheview.org