Not all kids recoil at the sight of vegetables.

Just ask Jeanne Fluri, a teacher at Meramec Heights Elementary School in Arnold.

"We've had a garden club for three years," Fluri said. "The kids love being out there. They water and fertilize at recess and now the lunch room uses some of our vegetables."

The school's youth gardening program is run in conjunction with Gateway Greening, a St. Louis non-profit that encourages healthy living through food projects and education.

One of Gateway Greening's featured projects is Kids Garden Fresh, a program that allows the construction and maintenance of community gardens at local schools.

"We've got 64 gardens throughout the St. Louis region at schools and youth organizations," said Steve Eigsti, Gateway Greening spokesman.

Among those 64 are eight new gardens about to open this year, including one at Marian Middle School in South City.

As part of the program, Gateway Greening provides start-up materials and educational support to students and staff throughout the year. The idea is to teach kids about science and nutrition through digging and planting.

"Our philosophy is you reach more students through hands-on activity," Eigsti said. "It's fascinating to watch these kids' amazement when they discover a tomato turned red or a radish pulled from the ground."

Students nurture vegetables and plants with twin goals in mind: learning about gardening, then reaping what they've grown.

"Some of the schools use the gardens as part of their lunch program," Eigsti said.

Along with learning the production end, students learn the value of a well-rounded diet.

"There's a strong nutrition component to the program," Eigsti said.

That nutrition component was one of the reasons the program appealed to Marian Middle School.

"We want to use the garden to sustain our culinary arts program by having fresh produce on campus," said Jessica Kilmade, student services director for the school.

All 75 students at the all-girls school are required to take culinary arts courses.

"We want them to learn where food comes from," Kilmade said. "We want to fight childhood obesity through proper nutrition and lifestyle choices."

The school will build two raised gardens on a shelf in a corner of its parking lot.

"We'll grow beans, tomatoes and squash," Kilmade said. "Things that do well in the St. Louis summer."

The school hopes to have its garden ready by October.

Meanwhile at Meramec Heights, Fluri's young green thumbs can't wait to get back to business.

"We're growing corn for the first time this year," she said. "The kids love it and can't wait to do more."

On the web: www.gatewaygreening.org