It’s summer. The sunflowers are opening their tight fists to reveal a sunny display.

Cue an overabundance of cucumbers and squash and mint. Luckily, they are still early enough that we haven’t gotten tired of eating them…yet.

The tomatoes aren’t ready. At least, they are not ready here.

The radishes that were coming out of our ears–cutie little red French Breakfast ones, giant white diakon ones–they have all been eaten. The hidden ones we missed harvesting earlier are now too fibrous.

Did you know that when you plant the Three Sisters–corn, squash and beans together as the Native Americans did long before us–that yes, those bean tendrils wind their way beautifully up the stalk? It is comforting: what they taught us in preschool is indeed true.

The garden gives its gifts in waves. Sometimes those waves rush up over you and you have more than you can eat, more than you can pickle, more than you can manage. That’s when your friends get lucky.

But, if you get it wrong and it starts to go a little bit past, but not really rotting? That’s when the chickens get lucky.

Some more experience would be nice in terms of timing the garden or planting in phases. If I only had Pop around. (He was my granddad.)

Anyway, the heads of romaine are hanging on, but they are going to have to come out soon. We’ve been picking away enough leaves for impromptu salads a few times a week. By now, I’ve kinda already made every salad I can think of. How to make the last few salads amazing?

The farmer’s market feels silly to me now that we have so much growing at home. But, we left the Saturday market with a very pregnant container of black mission figs which turned around my salad boredom. It is the easiest thing in the world and I didn’t even mix my usual dressing for it. I just threw on the oil and vinegar.

Here it is:

Fig & Romaine Salad
Romaine lettuce, chopped
Figs, diced
(really good) Balsamic
(really good) Olive Oil
Pepper

Variations? Many. Goat cheese would be genius. The ones in the picture have cucumber. Meh. I liked it better plain as in the recipe. The walnuts went in as an afterthought and that was successful.