In which the garden does what the garden always does here in August

Stand back, y'all.

Floofs are excellent gardening companions

It's time for the annual Garden Explosion!

Our weird little hybrid squashes continue to look like something out of a 1970's Sprite commercial.

Half lemon, half lime on the outside.  Mostly zucchini-esque on the inside

The plums aren't quite ripe yet.

The chickens are ready.  They love plums.

I picked about a dozen over-achieving plums today, but the majority will start getting ready over the weekend.

Patty has Big Plans for the plum crop this year.  If you've never tasted
pickled plums, you really haven't lived yet.  Trust me.

Elsewhere on the farm, there are beans.

Vines are taller than the chicken house!

Scarlet runner beans, shelled out, make the best bean soup

Purple Dragon Tongue beans are delicious steamed,
grilled, pickled, or raw.  The dogs are huge fans of beans.

 Our orchard apples are booming.  These apples aren't very tasty for anything but applesauce, but the horses, goats, and poultry happily stuff themselves with windfalls at every opportunity.

Mimsy loved to eat apples.  The current batch of dogs
prefer plums...and beans.

Chicken Twelve has resigned herself to captivity, finally (in years past she has scorned fences and gates, and preferred to wander unhindered around the property),

These are a hardy blush grape variety, not that we've
ever gotten a chance to taste many.

so it's possible that we will actually be able to harvest grapes this year.

And then, there are the Pumpkins.

I wear a size medium glove.  And usually, I have a thumb on this hand....?

This has been an extraordinary year for pumpkins.  Long hot days.  Regular water (thanks to a timer on the garden sprinklers), and cool-but-not-cold nights.  This will be a record-breaker year for serious pumpkin growers.  

I am not a serious pumpkin grower.  

"Shhhh, shaddup you guys!  We'll be over the fence and
across the yard before she notices we're gone!"

I giggle too much at the antics of my squashes.

The cucumbers and tomatoes are remarkable this year because they aren't black and dreadful...but they aren't amazing enough for photos.  Maybe next year.

For now, dinner is ready.

We're having beans!

I love this time of year.