Students at Hickory Hills Elementary had a sweet lunch treat this week. They dined on sweet potatoes that they grew on the roof of their own school. With the help of Master Gardener Kay Johnson, the students planted the sweet potatoes from seed this summer, tended the crop all season, and helped dig up the roots for their special lunch on Thursday. “The kindergarteners will come in kind of shyly, and they find the seed and they get to plant it,” says Mr. Johnson. “Then about two or three weeks later they find a seedling about this high. Then they really get excited.”

Hickory Hills is the first school in the district to be certified in the LEED program, which stands for leadership in energy and environmental design.

Watch the students enjoying their sweet rewards in this clip from local news channel KOLR10 at OzarksFirst.com.

KOLR10 News: November 13, 2014