Exploding Lettuce!

My husband and I tested out the new drip irrigation last week while we escaped to Las Vegas. We set it on a timer and tried to forget about it. My fear was that we would not water the garden enough or the soaker hoses would not be positioned close enough to the roots to keep the plants alive. The temperatures increased from the mid to upper 60's to the mid 80's and I had visions of dead and wilted veggies. Boy was I mistaken!

The most noticeable growth was the lettuce. When we left, it looked like this...

Tiny little plugs of lettuce that looked like it had a long way to go before we could enjoy a fresh salad.

The little puffs of green in the back row are iceburg lettuce which, as you can see, are placed in a shaded row. This stunted their growth a bit in the beginning, but the sun has since shifted and that row is getting full sun.

This is what it looks like today!

Amazing growth in just 7 days. And that is after eating three servings of salad two nights ago! I am so excited. We do have some critters (Aphids?) that have taken up shop on the red oak leaf in the front row, but I am sure the problem can be solved easily. I'll be researching that today.