It's been a strange season for the garden for me. First we got a late frost that wiped out my first tomato and pepper plants. Then we had a really wet spring for a while that led to a slow start for some veggies and a fast start for others, followed by a dry snap in June.
Peas were slow to start (I actually picked my first Jalapeno before I picked my first pea), then they gave up the ghost about a week after I picked the first pod. I tried a low variety that doesn't need a trellis, but it's a pain compared to a normal trellised variety.
Everything that actually took hold and didn't get overrun by weeds is doing fantastic right now. Our heat wave the last 2 weeks really kicked everything into high gear up here. The "beer crisper" drawer in my fridge is full of zucchini, and that's just my first plant - the second one I started from seed is just getting ready to set fruit. I've gotten a few eggplant already and have about 7 or 8 to pick over the next 3 or 4 days. Chili peppers are starting to kick into gear, and I just got my first 4 ripe cherry tomatoes this week. The Romas are starting to ripen and the beefsteaks are getting fat.
I'm barely able to keep up with the cukes, but I'm about to be overrun. I had every intention of running them up tomato cages this year, but I had a few days where I couldn't get out in the garden and now they have carpeted that whole section of the garden. The good thing is that the bunnies won't go past the cukes to the other side of the garden.
My biggest surprise is that it looks like I'm going to actually get some ripe watermelons this year. In years past even the icebox varieties haven't started setting fruit until August and never ripened in time before fall hit. Right now I already have a few that are getting close thanks to the heatwave.
This is also my first season where I got a harvest from my currants and gooseberries. I have enough red and pink currants in the freezer to add to a couple of gallons of saison. Some of the black currants found their way into a strawberry melomel, and the rest will probably hang out in the freezer until next year when my sours start to come online.
Next up is trying to get some kale, carrots and beets going for the fall garden. My root veggie patch got overrun by weeds this spring, so I'm hoping I can keep it under control until the crops start going strong.