Congressional Support for the White House Vegetable Garden

First Lady in the White House garden. Photo: The White House

The South Lawn of the White House. Photo: Stockxpert

WASHINGTON (DP) In an unexpected move this morning, several members of Congress announced they would be working in the new vegetable garden at the White House.

First Lady Michelle Obama and local school children broke ground for the South Lawn garden on March 20, and the project has received widespread public support. A surge of interest in kitchen gardens has swept the country this winter, with seed companies running out of popular vegetable varieties. The current White House garden plan incorporates vegetables, edible and ornamental flowers, and herbs.

Senators and Representatives have formed ad hoc, bipartisan committees to assist with specific aspects of the garden, and to explore future additions. The initial committee assignments are:

Summer vegetables

Rep. Melissa Bean (D-IL)

Winter vegetables

Sen. Olympia Snowe (R-ME)

Flowers

Rep. Bill Posey (R-FL)

Herbs

Sen. Jim DeMint (R-SC)

Fruit

Rep. Marion Berry (D-AK)

Rep. Roscoe Bartlett (R-MD)

Rep. Ander Crenshaw (R-FL)

Rep. Joe Pitts (R-PA)

Pest control

Rep. Virginia Foxx (R-NC)

Rep. Phil Hare (D-IL)

Rep. Marcy Kaptur (D-OH)

Rep. Louise Slaughter (R-NY)

Subcommittee on beneficial insects for pest control

Sen. Jim Webb (D-VA)

Subcommittee on use of ducks for pest control

Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-UT)

Sen. Robert Byrd (D-WV)

Soil

Rep. Lacy Clay (D-MO)

Organic practices

Rep. Al Green (D-TX)

Irrigation

Rep. Maxine Waters (D-CA)

The committee members denied they were jumping on the bandwagon of a popular program, and insisted they had been eating fresh fruits and vegetables with their constituents for many years.

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