Home Again, Home Again, Jiggity Jig

WOW! We returned home from a week's trip (including an unexpected day's delay out of Indianapolis due to Hurricane Fay) to find this bountiful harvest overloading the vines and plants in the back yard! It seems that while we were gone everything grew gangbusters, as if I injected the plants with steroids before I left. Not having the chance to pick any of this for a whole week, it turned into a haul.

We have the following vegetables sitting in the kitchen now...I just have to find room in the fridge for it all:


2 Japanese eggplant--a bit damaged from overwatering they received from when I was trying to sprout some seeds I planted nearby.
5 zucchini--including the largest I have harvested this year. What am I supposed to do with this mother? It will undoubtedly be tough and stringy inside, with huge seeds surrounded by dry pith. Perhaps I can salvage some of the flesh for...any ideas?





3 large green peppers--in addition, the pepper plants have at least 5 more new peppers growing to good sizes on each plant. I think I will make stuffed peppers with these ones, as the fresh flavor is a bit compromised when they get this big.







20 lemon cucumbers--most much huger, and many much more yellow than I've allowed them to grow before this week. I hope they still taste good! How are we going to eat all of these?




The regular (green) cucumbers I planted haven't done anything. They have been overtaken by basil plants, lemon cucumber and watermelon vines, and pepper plants. They get no sun! Poor things.



2 Watermelons--one a weird, stunted melon that didn't grow at all while we were gone. I figured I might as well pick it, just to see what it looks like inside. It was pale pink/yellow/white inside, but quite sweet, actually. The other melon I was trying to pick up out of the vines to show Molly and it just came off the vine. Hopefully it won't be too under ripe. I have another melon that was about the size of a golf ball when we left, and is now a lot bigger...perhaps the size of one of those crazy big walla walla onions...or a small sugar pumpkin. I think I'll leave this one on the vine until first frost...if I can.

And finally...15 tomatoes!

7 big beef (bright red)
6 brandywine (pinkish & yellow/green)
1 green zebra (yellow with green stripes)

AND

1 red chile--there are a ton more chiles on the plant, all green, but I should probably start picking them soon. This is the only one that turned red while we were gone. I've forgotten what variety of pepper they are. Perhaps serrano...usually when I see serranos in the store, they are green. I am curious to cut up this little red pepper and see what it tastes like.

I just realized that I forgot to check the cherry tomato plants. I'm sure there will be more to pick from them in the morning. I also have a feeling that in the fading light I may have missed som cucumbers and tomatoes. I am still waiting for ripe tomatoes on the Hawaiian pineapple plant and the black krim. I am also surprised that the zebra hadn't produced more ripe fruit while we were gone. Perhaps the light of day will reveal more to harvest tomorrow. Tonight, I'm putting all this in my fridge and going to bed.