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Carrots, peas and collard greens filled the garden in back of The Children's Guild school in Chillum.

Or at least they did until Tuesday, when 21 eighth-graders at the school harvested the fruits — and vegetables — of their labor.

The Children's Guild in is a nonprofit school serving emotionally disturbed children and those with autism living in Prince George's and Montgomery counties and Washington, D.C. Students at the school began the summer by helping plant and water the various crops, which they then harvested and used to prepare a lunch for themselves and teachers, in an effort to learn about nutrition and teamwork.

Caring for crops, harvesting and cooking them as a group helped students learn how to work together, teachers said.

"A big part is culinary arts. It builds team-concepts," said teacher Ted Kerney. "That's something that kids don't get to [normally] do."

Kathy Lascala, director of professional development schools, agreed. She said the garden was inspired by Maryland's landscape and unique features — it had a pond meant to represent a beach, for example — and added that the students also learned about healthy food.

"We really want to encourage a lifestyle of wellness and good nutrition," she said.

Student Stanley Roberts of Beltsville said he already loves to cook, but marveled at how long it took — nearly two months — for common ingredients like peas to grow.

"It's soothing and it's better for us," he said of growing food in the garden. "We get to learn how food is made ... how long it takes to grow and how much care you have to give it."

Roberts chewed on a just-picked piece of broccoli, while classmate James Ulmer ate peas he just picked off the vine.

"It's so good. It's sweet," said Ulmer, of Washington, D.C. "Whenever I'm hungry, if I want something like a vegetable, I can just grow it instead of wasting my money going to the store."

Teacher Thulile Rice said students also visited a farm to pick pumpkins and apples as part of the curriculum.

"[Students learned] the process of it all, of you go to a farm and what you can make, the connection of where it begins and where it ends," she said.

Urban farmer Adam Fisher, who specializes in growing food in underutilized urban spaces, helped lead the project and taught the students about what it takes to grow crops.

"Most kids are eating unhealthy, processed foods," he said.

The project increased students' awareness and exposure to different foods, such as figs. The garden's fig tree is now picked by students like Kara Perry of Hyattsville, who had never had a fig before but now frequents the tree often.

"It gets them to see there's more than just the corner store in the city," Kerney said.