I came across the White House blog with a diagram of the new vegetable garden. Looks really nice. Lots of lettuce. And I was looking at the photos of Michele gardening. My goodness, I have to do something about my gardening wardrobe! What is she wearing? I love it, but now I feel way under dressed....
My thought when I saw that garden plan was "Hooray! Now, grow some food."
ReplyDeleteMrs. President's wardrobe is interesting... she is even more well dressed than Martha Stewart when she potters around in her garden.
I am betting Mrs. Obama wished she had worn some garden gloves! Also, I would have had my hair tucked up under a hat out of the way. But then I don't have photographers taking pictures of me as I dig in the dirt either.
ReplyDeleteoh my goodness.. those boots! We'll see if by the end of the summer she is still dressing so fancy hehe
ReplyDeleteAll black outfit; of course I love it! I'm bad about wearing gardening gloves, I just don't. =)
ReplyDeleteLettuce is multi-purpose... Gotta have lots of it.
Wow...no tomatoes. That's almost a sin! I might have to go back and read Leviticus just to make sure. lol!
ReplyDeletehttp://theconservativegardener.blogspot.com/
Hello,
ReplyDeleteI just found your delightful blog--I live just nearby in Winchester and have been growing perennials for a few years and tomatoes with variable success in pots...but this year I would like to start a vegetable garden if I can find a way to rid the garden of the woodchuck (happily living under the porch).
So, my questions for yo are:
1. where do you get/buy manure ?
2. where do you buy coir ?
3. tomatoes--had luck with cherry/grape varieties but the Brandywine I tried in 2007 only began to ripen in late September (I had started with plants not seeds so they had every advantage). Any idea what I am doing wrong ?
4. Have you had luck with winter squash esp acorn and butternut in this area ?
thank you
:) I am bad about gloves too, but then I'm not the first lady so nobody cares about the dirt under my messed up nails!
ReplyDeleteI don't like gloves either. I usually put them on only after I injure my hands.
ReplyDelete1. Get manure at Home Depot or True Value or A garden center like Mahoney's. Or find and contact a local farm. We have a horse owner who drops it off for us at the community garden. (Thanks horse owner!)
2. I don't know what coir is or why you need this.
3. Brandywine does ripen late and it doesn't produce very many tomatoes. And we had a cool rainy early summer last year. Many gardeners lost all their tomatoes because of this, so you were lucky to at least get late Brandywines last year. Hopefully this summer will be sunnier. To get earlier tomatoes, try growing a few early varieties too. The earliest for me are the hybrids Early Girl and Orange Blossom. And like you say - the cherries. Also make sure you plant in the sunniest spot you can.
4. Both of those squash varieties do great here. I will try Waltham butternut for the first time this year.
Good luck!
There's no basil, either! No tomatoes, no basil? I would never have gotten into gardening if it weren't for my obsession with those two plants. Maybe the Obamas/White House staff/webmaster like to do what I do: make a plan and then improvise heavily. We may see some tomatoes yet. ;)
ReplyDeleteGood for Mrs Obama. I couldn't stand it anymore so I put my pea and green bean seeds in the ground today. Oh, and the rest of the onions. My husband is impressed with all the stuff in so far, it's not really that much, just stuff I know I will buy at the store or use for spaghetti sauce. I can't wait for the local nurseries to get their plants in. Again, great site.
ReplyDeleteHmm, I think they need to look at their plan again. Peas and Onions don't like each other!! No Tomatoes, Basil!?!? No Cukes? Peppers? Carrots?
ReplyDeleteI wonder if this is just the early spring garden?
It MUST be just the spring plan.
ReplyDeleteThere are no warm weather plants.
I bet when all those greens die in the DC heat they'll put in cukes, zucchini, tomatoes, basil, eggplant, peppers, okra, beans, etc etc...
And potatoes and corn...
ReplyDeleteAs Jessica points out, onions and peas are not good companions. Its believed that alliums stunt the growth and alter the flavor of peas and beans. I wonder if this is really true? Many gardening sites mention it.
ReplyDeleteIm just ecstatic about the White House having a vegetable garden again...I didn't think I would ever see that. Great blog, Im an everyday reader!!! Im out here in California, so I pretty much have everything out in the garden now. Still need to find a spot for the potatoes!
ReplyDeleteI went out and bought new gardening shoes (to the tune of $10 so I wouldn't ruin my other shoes) - but I sure as heck didn't look as snazzy as our first lady :-).
ReplyDeleteIt would be fun to have such gorgeous boots - and to look so great in leggings!
ReplyDeleteHey Kath! May I call you Kath?
ReplyDeleteCoir is a renewable resource and an environmentally friendly substitute for peat moss.
Fantastic news about the White House veggie garden! Leading by example!
ReplyDeleteI love that they have a veggie garden - but some more practical clothing may be in order :)
ReplyDeleteI'm so thrilled that Michelle Obama is interested in supporting growing your own vegetables, converting lawn to something productive, and wanting to get out there and do something active.
ReplyDeleteAs a totally new-to-gardening urban person, she'll learn a lot about what works to wear while gardening and what doesn't!
It's actually sort of refreshing that she hadn't planned it as a photo op -- she might have worn some sort of spiffy gardening outfit, which would have been equally surprising!
Really cool that they're planting a garden. We are starting one this year too.
ReplyDelete