First lady, kids get to work in the White House garden

First Lady Michelle Obama joined some elementary school children in the White House garden again today to harvest vegetables.

"These sweet potatoes are huge! They're huge. So, hopefully,  you guys will be able to pull up some of these huge sweet potatoes," she told students from Bancroft and Kimball schools.

Joining them was Jim Adams, the chief horticulturist from the White House. The first lady told the children, according to the White House press office, that he "helped us figure out where to put things, how to make it beautiful and to make sure that the food was going to grow."

She said that more than 740 pounds of food has been harvested from the garden. And she had the children guessing at the cost of planting the garden. Guesses reached as high as $6,000. But the cost was $180, she said.

-- Mary MacVean

Photo: A girl from Bancroft Elementary School in Washington, D.C., reacts as she sees the sweet potato being held by First Lady Michelle Obama as they harvest vegetables from the garden on the South Lawn. Credit: Associated Press.

Comments

[laytonian]

The White House horticulturist was NOT hired for this garden. The White House has a full maintenance staff - and always has had. Funny how none of you resented that when Bush was in office.

Isn't it a much better use of resources to use an instructional garden, than to cultivate what was previously in that space?

[Ryan]

It takes a real genius to assume the White House hired a chief horticulturist for this one garden. I think it is safe to say the gardens of the White House require considerable attention. It sits on 18 acres. Even the great George W. Bush had a cheif horticulturist. Weird. Get a clue "righties"

[Big E of California]

The laugh here is that the original garden was not safe; was found to contain toxins from a sludge plant that was reclaimed as fertilizer; now planted a year later with pro help, not on the advice of the chef as last year. Bet the soil cost more than $180.00!!! Check out Mother Earth news if you want to check sources or go to http://www.heronswoodvoice.com/2009/08/our-white-house-garden/#comment-22628 and start there. All in all it's the thought that counts, and it does set a good example for all of us. (But hey... really... $180.00??

[Mao Ze Deng]

I guess $180 does not include the "Chief Horticulturalist's" salary? "Chief" also implies underlings....

[Tom B.]

Say what you will about Obama, there's no doubt about it, his wife is cute. I like the way she has taken it upon herself to teach young people valuable life lessons, like how to plant and harvest a vegetable garden, the value of which can be forgotten by those of us who become too dependent on the supermarket until we feel it in the pocketbook. And who can complain about the results? Check out that spud!

[ted]

It's an example of Obama math at it finest. It only cost $180 dollars to plant this garden... No need to mention the cost of the white house horticulturist and countless other staff that were involved.

[Jolie]

Finally, a nice story. We need more of these. Thanks!