In Joy Emporium: ~~~Gratitude~~~ Bounty! & Beetles?

Summer garden bounty has arrived! Pretty much everyday there is something to put by for winter and, definitely, plenty to eat NOW! (yes! I grew artichokes again this year~fun!) Mostly freezing and dehydrating at this point. Not quite enough volume for tomato canning just yet. Slicing and blanching are the words for these days. Other tasks continue as well...there is still the continued beetle battle....oh sigh. I must say I am a bit weary of this particular chore.

Here is today's harvest of insects...some potato beetle too. It is just getting yucky! I need to get out there each day and gather. Pretty much collect the same number each time. So morning or night when the air is a bit cooler I do my duty. (if you try this in the heat of the day the Japanese Beetles will just fly away)

Philosophy is needed to get going and finish. So today I tried to think up beetle gratitudes. Ok~~~here is what I came up with.... I am grateful I found a caterpillar nest in the hazelnuts while it was still just eggs during my beetle hunt, I may have missed it otherwise. Japanese Beetles are not as gross to squish by hand as caterpillars. When you squeeze a Japanese Beetle to death it's guts won't squirt you in the eye...this happens sometimes with large soft bodied potato beetles...seriously yucky!

When a JB falls into your shoe it doesn't bite...just a bit creepy crawly...at least you capture it!

They are sort of beautiful in their own scarab beetles way~~~

The ducks are still devouring them with delight!

And then there is my Mountain Ash Tree or Rowan, by another name. The beetles have really done a number on it. This tree and I go back a bit. It is the tree that I planted when my son was born. Rowan was my secret girlhood name. We had a Mt Ash in the yard where I grew up, I thought the tree had magical powers. Maybe, I thought my son would love this tree like did as a child. Well, his path is different than mine, as it should be. This is my tree. It has been through a lot. When we first planted it it was attacked by borers. After surviving that with my help, it became the favorite meal of a local sapsucker for a few years. It was so weakened one year is didn't put out any leaves so we cut it to the ground. From the rootstock a hardier bush emerged. It did pretty well for a few years and even produced some berries once. Then the Beetles came. This year has been rougher than past seasons. The beetles munch on it's leaves and I shake it each night to try and help it out. I thought this year is was a goner until a week ago. I looked up one day and saw New Growth! Nature has it's way! I hope to live long enough to see the beetles find a balance in their new found ecosystem. In the meantime, I will take heart in the fact that nature is tenacious and resilient! Like this tree I have had some hard times but new growth is always what comes from those experiences!