Where it’s at: August 19

The garden’s awfully green at the moment—plenty of rain has fallen in the last week, and everything’s glossy and sparkly in the rare moments of sunshine. But things are definitely in a lull, and I suspect that’s due to the current weather conditions. Along with the rain, the temps have been fairly low.

“This is great,” said my friend Sarah, after she convinced me to go swimming today, even though I knew the outdoor pool water would be numbingly cold. “I’ve been in Alaska most of the summer. It’s 80 degrees here.”

OK, so, yes. It was 80 degrees. And I have plenty of insulation, and I didn’t die in the pool. In fact, I’ll even admit that it felt good, after that initial entry issue.

But the nights have been cool, which is why the water’s so cold, and although I can’t be sure, I’m guessing this isn’t great for plant growth. Maybe I’m wrong? I just know that while I was sweltering in my un-air-conditioned house, the garden gave off produce at an alarming rate.

“If summer just lasted until October, we’d be in great shape,” said my coworker, Jackie, this week, as we chatted about gardening at the front desk.

“If summer just lasted through August, we’d be in great shape,” I said.

I’ve had to cut back some more dead growth on the canteloupe and one of the cucumber plants, so the main plot looks a little sparse to me these days:

Over in the container garden, there are tons of tomatoes (grape and Big Beef) growing, and signs of a pepper explosion. But there’s not a lot of color in that sector of the yard—everyone seems to be waiting for the return of the heat to get the party started.