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First gardener: Obama shows off the fruits (or vegetables) of her labor
By: Nikki Schwab and Tara Palmeri
Washington Examiner
10/29/09 11:00 PM EDT
Michelle Obama had a sweet spot for her sweet potatoes as she and local schoolchildren harvested wheelbarrows full of fall crops from the White House Kitchen Garden. 
"Now this is a sweet potato," she said Thursday, holding up one that easily was bigger than a guinea pig.
Obama and her fifth-grade helpers from Bancroft and Kimball elementary schools pulled up carrots, dug up fennel and piled up the giant sweet potatoes all to be donated to Miriam's Kitchen, a local food shelter. The White House Kitchen Garden has produced more than 740 pounds of foods since it was planted in March, something the first lady touted with pride.
"So for less than $200, we have planted enough food to feed not just the folks at the White House, but we've also given a lot of food to some of our neighbors," she added.
She used the harvest as a teachable moment to get the kids to promise to eat vegetables, though still rewarded them for their efforts with a batch of oatmeal and cherry cookies.
Now, with the fall veggies out of the way, we're told winter crops are being planned, including spinach, broccoli and assorted greens.
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