Silverbeet lining
The Golden Mile’s vege garden
The Golden Mile has become the rainbow mile as a vivid variety of silverbeet sprouts along the traffic islands of Lambton Quay.
At this time of year, the ‘‘bright lights’’ variety, also known as rainbow chard, grows in the median strips of the city’s main thoroughfare, between the Supreme Court and Hunter St, sometimes interspersed with parsley.
Most of it is composted once it’s harvested in late September, but it’s fine to eat, so long as you aren’t put off by the diesel fumes and pigeon droppings, Wellington City Council says.
Just make sure you ask permission, and wash it thoroughly.
Council horticulture team leader Phillipa Garratt said the plantings began more than a decade ago, partly to show people beautiful and edible plants could be grown in the windswept city’s often brutal climate.
‘‘Lambton Quay is a massive wind tunnel, especially in a northerly, but silverbeet is hardy and can stand up to Wellington’s harsh winds,’’ Garratt said.
The railway station has also featured silverbeet plantings in the past and, when the crop is harvested, passersby often ask staff if they can take some home.
Garratt said eating the silverbeet was fine as long as anyone who took it – with permission from a council officer – washed the traffic pollution and bird droppings off it.
A council spokesman said the vegetables were not given to charities or the likes of food rescue organisation Kaibosh because of the pollution.
‘‘The main reason is that the environment – vehicle fumes etc – probably means all the veges would have to be thoroughly washed and most charities probably wouldn’t want the unnecessary hassle when there’s other more convenient food options available.
‘‘That of course doesn’t stop commuters from occasionally purloining our parsley …’’