Veggies Gone Wild (or) What Happened to June?

Since June has apparently been kidnapped by August, we have been living with some high temps and humidity for the last few weeks. While that has not made us happy (and we are gonna be really irked if June shows up in August when we are up on the Big Lake attempting to escape August in DC), there has been one apparent benefit: the garden has taken off like crazy.

We have, of course, already been eating fresh lettuce for a while now and have even put up a few jars of some yummy, nutting arugula pesto (hint: just go with the roasted garlic and use either pine nuts or reduce the walnuts to a 1/3 of a cup)--but it is the summer veggies that are getting ready to burst--peas ready to pick, cucumbers overrunning their trellis, squash and peppers already start to tease us, tomatoes and beans starting their climb up their ladders and cages. Add fresh raspberries for dessert and flowers beginning to show their colors and you know that the solstice is upon us.