The four-year-old gardening project was flooded with gallons of water during a November 2003 four-alarm fire that destroyed the school's newly renovated $4.5 million main building. But that didn't stop Gardner Academy science teacher Kit Faulk and an eager group of fifth-grade students from rebuilding their little patch of heaven.

Not only did the garden volunteers double the new garden's size through a grant, but the school had a bountiful harvest, donating 50 pounds of vegetables to Second Harvest Food Bank.

"It gave students the opportunity to take ownership and be able to give back," Gardner Academy Principal Mildred Arellano said.

And in Faulk's eyes, the fire's impacts on the garden were not a total loss. In the end it proved beneficial.

"The garden was only 12 feet from the fire," Faulk said. "It was completely flooded and filled with embers. We filled in the soil and used the embers as fertilizer."

Although the garden was unprotected from the elements, she noted that this year's organic produce flourished. "It could be that the fire cleared all the insects out," she said.

The rebuilt garden yielded a bumper crop of potatoes, tomatoes, carrots, beets, artichokes, herbs, peas, cabbage and lettuce and a horticultural experience for the children.

"I wanted students to develop the knowledge of how enjoyable it is to work in a garden, make the campus beautiful and contribute to the community," Faulk said.

But the garden wouldn't have been possible without a state grant and student volunteer work.

With the aid of a previously awarded $2,000 GO SERV grant for a community project from the California Governor's office, the school purchased wood for planter boxes, garden borders and more soil.

While approximately 30 children helped add dirt and prepare for planting, Faulk had a dedicated core group of 10 fifth-graders who volunteered during one lunchtime recess once a week to tend the garden.

"Planting is pretty exciting," said fifth-grader Noemi Sanchez. She said even the weeding was worth the effort to see the results--healthy crops.

For many of the students, it was their first experience gardening.

"We had a lot of artichokes," Noemi said.

Another fifth-grade student, Mayra Naranjo, said that she and her friends took good care of the vegetables, and that her teacher, Kirsten Larson, let the children literally enjoy some of the fruits of their labor when they made fried green tomatoes.

"I'm going to ask my teacher to give me the recipe," Noemi said.

She also discovered how much fresher garden-grown produce tastes compared to store-bought. And she said, "When my mom cooks, I can help her."

Anareli Garcia said she was glad that three of her friends also worked in the garden so they could be together at recess.

For classmate Andrea Berber, her gardening interests spilled over to her home.

"My dad is helping me plant carrots, watermelons and beans," she said.

Faulk added that the students not only gained planting, tending and harvesting experience, but they also built wood-chip pathways and planter boxes for the kindergartners and painted a "worm box" that added fertilizer to the garden.

And just as gardens grow, communities grow with them, especially through a hardship. Arellano said that the Gardner Academy staff wanted to thank all the individuals and groups who donated items after the fire.