Farming the White House Lawn: Victory Garden for Obama?

Eleanor Roosevelt did it, setting the example for millions of Americans.

Will Barack Obama do it?

One group is trying to send him a message, gathering petition signatures with a very memorable vehicle: the WhoFarmMobile.

The WhoFarmMobile is two school buses fused together with an organic edible garden on the roof, manned by the WhoFarmers, with the mission of seeing some serious change at the White House. Change in the way we think about food in this country.

The WhoFarmers are traveling across the country visiting schools, food banks, farmers’ markets, and festivals in an effort to inform the people of their petition to President Obama: a petition to create an organic farm at the White House that would serve as a model of sustainable living for all of us.

The WhoFarm project is the brainchild of Daniel Bowman Simon and Casey Gustowarow, both former Peace Corp Volunteers, (now WhoFarmers)  who drive the modified schoolbus originally named Topsy Turvy.

The White House Organic Farm petition:

We, the people, respectfully request that an organic farm be planted on the grounds of The White House, at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave, Washington, DC.

The White House Organic Farm (aka TheWhoFarm) will be a model for healthy, economical and sustainable living everywhere. It will serve as an educational tool and economic aid, and as a means to provide food security in the Nation’s Capitol. It will reconnect the Office of the Presidency to the self-sufficient agricultural roots of America’s Founding Fathers.

The White House Organic Farm Recipe

Article I: The Farmers
Public school children and Americans with disabilities will work The White House Organic Farm, to set an example for the world of hands-on learning and will foster an independent, do-it-yourself work ethic.

Article II: The Eaters
The White House Organic Farm’s harvest will provide fresh food for the President, the President’s family, and the President’s distinguished guests.  Just as importantly, it will also supply healthy food to public school lunch programs and food pantries in Washington, DC.

Article III: The Delivery
Food from The White House Organic Farm will be delivered to local public schools and food pantries by volunteers on foot and by bicycle, at a net-zero cost to U.S. taxpayers.

Article IV: The Seeds
The White House organic farmers will plant a diverse mix of heirloom seeds passed down from Thomas Jefferson’s farm at Monticello and seeds donated by American farmers and gardeners, to celebrate both the rich agricultural traditions of the Office of the President and the passions of everyday Americans for working her fertile and bountiful land.

Article V: The Soil
The White House Organic Farm will use healthy topsoil, nourished by compost supplements from yard and food waste from all three branches of the federal government; from The White House, from The United States Capitol, and from The United States Supreme Court.

If you can support this, go sign the White House Organic Farm petition.

While you’re at it, watch this Victory Garden video and then go visit Change.org and vote for Victory Gardens 2.0:

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