The farm stand at Whippoorwill Farm is now open for business on Old County Road in West Tisbury.

It’s been nearly 15 years since farm owner Andrew Woodruff could say that. Between a booming CSA membership, a move to Thimble Farm in Oak Bluffs, and a move back again to Old County Road, the farm stand has been empty.

“It’s nice to see this farm get active again,” Mr. Woodruff said this week, his John Deere hat shading his face from the August sun.

As is my custom, I will continue repeating myself. I know I’ve said this many times but here goes . . . an aspirin, moistened and taped to a bee sting will immediately stop the pain. I guess it is the anti-inflammatory property of the medicine. Aspirin is, and always has been, my pain-relieving medication of choice. I trust it, it’s been around forever. Originally a plant extract from the bark of a willow tree, the powder made from said bark dates back to Hippocrates.

“I hope you got a lot of money, ’cause this ain’t gonna be cheap,” Walter barked at me as I pulled myself into the cab of his well-used tow truck.

At Stannard Farms in West Tisbury, Lisa Fisher is using good bugs to combat the bad ones. Peering into her green beans, she pulled aside heart-shaped leaves. She was looking for a mahogany-colored beetle a little larger than a ladybug, called the bean beetle.

What I don’t know is a lot! For example, all the petals of the echinacea are being eaten by a tiny worm. I can barely see it with my reading glasses. Sadly, only the center of the blossom remains on many of the flowers. I had several varieties in different colors. Honestly, it is always something!

As temperatures peaked at 90 degrees on the Vineyard last week, Blackwater Farm owner Debbie Farber worried about her chickens.

“Have you ever seen a chicken pant?” she said. “Chickens are not happy in this weather. I’m just trying to keep them cool and give them plenty of water. That’s all you can do.”