<p>mafool…I don’t know what region of the country you come from but people grow blueberries and strawberries even here in Vermont.</p>
<p>Blueberries can be grown all over and they make a great hedge-
I have about 10 different kinds.</p>
<p>I wonder if Barack has tried golden beets?
[They</a> are so gorgeous.]( <a href=“http://syrupandcornbread.com/2008/07/10/golden-beet-salad-with-goat-cheese-and-walnuts/]They”>http://syrupandcornbread.com/2008/07/10/golden-beet-salad-with-goat-cheese-and-walnuts/)</p>
<p>soozie- I’m in Michigan, and blueberries are a major crop in the sandy soil of the western part of the state. I know that blueberries and huckleberries grow well in Maine and Vermont. I had assumed with, I now realize, no basis whatsoever that blue berries liked the northern climes.</p>
<p>mafool…oh…I made an erroneous assumption that you thought DC was too far north to grow blueberries!</p>
<p>Heck no, I don’t have a garden. I buy all my arugula at Whole Foods.</p>
<p>My neighbor has a garden, though. I’m hoping that Tony Rezko will buy that property and let me use the garden (and the rest of the property) free of charge - just as kind of a nice gesture, doncha know.</p>
<p>Why must you turn, what was a pleasant thread free from political bickering, into something negative? Is your hate for all things Obama that deep? Seriously, you’re bordering on an obsession with bashing anything that could be tied to the man.</p>
<p>Idad…you can play on the swingset with the carefree kids if you want…but the garden doesn’t need any of your… umm…fertilizer :)</p>
<p>I think that a garden will be great! Alice Waters has been pushing the idea for years.</p>
<p>Ignore Idad. He’s a ol’ grumpy boots. </p>
<p>D.C. could stand to have more food-yielding gardens as it is difficult to find groceries with fresh quality fruit and veg. More are moving into the city but it’s a slow process, impeded by land prices among other factors.</p>
<p>I thought they said on the article I read that they planted lettuce.</p>
<p>they planted a lot of lettuce and spinach- I guess that is what you would plant first anyway since it is still cold.
( I just planted some rocket)</p>
<p>I think it would be great to start a new tradition and each occupant can add to it.
My high school for example had each class plant a cherry tree on the grounds ( flowering), but how cool would it be if every four years a new tree was planted at the White House?</p>
<p>While on a White House tour last week I did ask about the swing set. It was not visible from the tour area, but the guard said it was visible from other areas of the white house. </p>
<p>Someone ask the guard about the Obama family, and he said the kids come down all the time and he personally speaks to Obama almost everyday!</p>
<p>To the person who asked about planting…we’re expecting lows in the 20’s tonight here a half-hour north of D.C.</p>
<p>I think blueberries grow almost everywhere, except the desert! We grow tons of them here on the Gulf Coast. I think the garden is a great idea, although I got the idea it was as much for the kitchen staff as for the kids. The swing set is super. The first time I went to London and took the Tower tour, I got a kick out of the swing set installed on the moat.</p>
<p>And a big win for Alice Waters too! She has been pushing for a veggie garden at the White House for years.</p>
<p>Shame on you folks who have forgotten about the children’s book 'Blueberries for Sal." Of course blueberries are farmed in northern , cool climate states. LOL.</p>
<p>Also, I too giggled at the sight of Mrs. Obama brandishing a garden shovel in her designer outfit.</p>
<p>I was thrilled to see them planting a garden also. I followed in my mother’s footsteps( who followed in her mother’s) and have been gardening here on long island for the past 15 years. If I were to suggest one thing I cannot live without is Sungold Cherry tomatoes! Last weekend the Times had a layout of the beds. The paths are lined with Zinnias. My favorite summer flowers. But it must have been just the cool weather crops; no mention of squash, tomatoes, cukes, stringbeans yet. Love this thread.</p>
<p>There is nothing in the world like a tomato just picked, unless it is a strawberry picked and popped into the mouth while still warm from the June sun. Growing up we kids used the neighborhood gardens as our snack bar. Strawberries, raspberries, tomatoes, cucumbers, even rubarb were grabbed and eaten on the run. Maybe that’s why we could stay out from dawn to dusk.</p>
<p>A couple years ago we added a winter hoop house to the garden and we now have fresh lettuce, spinach,leeks, and other cool weather crops right up to Christmas and start harvesting again about the first of March. This year we had the first spinach salad on March 3rd! In Iowa! Heaven.</p>
<p>love the swingset and garden…and the dog should be arriving shortly. it is nice to see a family valuing its children in very real down to earth ways and creating the child friendly world that they are. these are the things that so many of us provide(d) to our children when they were little.
miss my veggie garden I had in New Jersey, any suggestions on veggie gardens in South Florida?</p>
<p>Lake Washington…funny that you mention Blueberries for Sal because I was going to mention it on this thread 3 days ago and then changed my mind. So, we were thinking alike!</p>