White House Vegetable Garden heirloom seeds and 10 different herbs such as anise hyssop and Thai basil. Former presidents' favorite produce were also sown, such as President Thomas Jefferson’s preferred vegetables, “Brown Dutch and Tennis Ball lettuce, Prickly Seed spinach and Savoy cabbage” but beets were not grown because President Obama did not like them. Along with the vegetable garden, a beehive was added near the chef’s kitchen that is overseen by Charlie Brandts, a beekeeper and White House carpenter. Honey collected from the beehives has been used to brew White House Honey Ale. The contributing gardeners responsible for the early stages of the
Catherine Ceniza Choy the Edith Kreeger Wolf Distinguished Visiting Professor from Northwestern University. Catherine Ceniza Choy Catherine Ceniza Choy is a Professor of Ethnic Studies at the University of California, Berkeley. Choy chairs the department of Ethnic Studies at UC Berkeley. Prior to working at UC Berkeley, she taught at the University of Minnesota in American Studies. Choy received her Bachelor of Arts in History from Pomona College in 1991, where she graduated cum laude. Choy proceeded to finish her Master of Arts from UCLA in 1993, and then a Ph.D. in History from UCLA in 1998. In 2003, Choy published a book