It’s not a full contact sport, but it is full contact, and thanks to a $2,000 grant from the Whole Kids Foundation, garden operations at MTS Elementary are engaging students to a higher degree.
Youngsters and teachers weed, pick, cook and eat fruits and vegetables from the garden  behind the school and in a small greenhouse just inside the school.
Second grade teacher Sonni Sylvester helps lead the charge, which includes a summer maintenance schedule for watering and weeding.  Sylvester focuses on plant life cycles while fifth grade teacher Amy Gleason helps organize the garden and planting.
When harvest times come, students are allowed to eat as they pick.  “Half comes in (to school) and half goes in your mouth,” said Director Sheila Casey.  Using the items that come in, students make veggie pizzas, applesauce and other palate pleasing creations.
Casey said students here typically don’t see vegetables as they come out of the ground, so it’s a completely different experience for them.  “I think it helps them to think outside of themselves with a community garden, and they’re all working on it,” she said.
The variety of herbs, vegetables and fruits includes kale, lettuce, raspberries and apples.  Grant dollars are being used for tomato vine fences, a rain barrel for water, seeds, planter beds and new lights in the greenhouse.  The garden has a 10-year history and MTS Elementary is in its third year at the facility.