After spending so much time with our hands and feet in the dirt, we do love the water.

Also, beer and cantaloupe. At the same time.

So we were lucky enough to dodge the bullet on a number of cool weather crop problems – late blight, blossom end rot, slugs. But we did get the Japanese beetles, all over the pinwheels marigolds, zinnias, and beans.

Fortunately, they’re too busy hanging out on top of each other making little beetles to be particularly evasive or crafty. You can just walk along the row, pick them off the leaves, plunk them in a jar of water, and let nature take its course.

This round definitely goes to Nathan Palmer, beetle catcher par excellence.

So apparently we’re popular with the king.

And he really likes misshapen butternut squash.

Well then.

That’s interesting.