The proposal to name collard greens the official state vegetable was prompted by a letter from Mary Grace Wingard, a 9-year-old Rocky Creek Elementary School student. Mary Grace said that she was inspired by a talk given by Governor Haley during a field trip her class made to the Statehouse.

Did slaves eat collards?

During the antebellum period enslaved Africans only had time to make sides dishes such as collard greens on Sundays. Masters gave their slaves off on Sundays and on few holidays and religious days. Collards are a fibrous greens which required extensive cooking to make them tender and easy to digest.

Do collard greens have another name?

collard, (Brassica oleracea, variety acephala), original name colewort, also called collard greens, form of cabbage, of the mustard family (Brassicaceae). The plant is a source of nutritionally important minerals and vitamins A and C.