Branson Fire Station 2 created the city’s first “urban garden” when they removed landscaping next to the building and replaced it with jalapenos…and corn and tomatoes and watermelon. 

Fire Station 2 crews have been growing their own vegetables since 2006, when they removed bushes and mulch between their firestation and a sidewalk and replaced it with just had a few tomatoes, peppers, and cucumbers.  Now firefighters are growing 6 different varieties of heirloom tomatoes, bell peppers, jalapeno peppers, banana peppers, red chili peppers, pablano peppers, cucumbers, eggplants, zucchini squash, yellow summer squash, patty pan squash, butternut squash, cantaloupe, watermelon, banana melon, sweet corn, yellow sweet onions, thyme, oregano, rosemary, sage, dill, sweet Italian basil, mint, and lettuce. 

Fire stations are staffed 24/7 so that’s a lot of food prepared at the station.  They saved money, supported better nutrition and had enough to give away. “We planted the garden as a crew, we water and weed the garden as a crew, and we harvest and cook together as a crew.

It feels so good to be able to plan our fire department dinners based around what is ripe in our garden.    It forces us to eat healthier, eat fresher, and eat locally sustainable produce.  Nothing tastes better than a sun ripened heirloom tomato that you grew and harvested yourself.  Fire Station 3 is working on a garden as well that has an assortment of veggies. “