It’s been a tough season for the Scotts Valley High School varsity boys’ volleyball team, as the young Falcon squad has been plagued by inexperience and a small roster. So far, that has resulted in a dismal 1-4 record in Santa Cruz Coast Athletic League play.

I received an email from a reader not too long ago who lives on a ridge top outside Scotts Valley. She wrote that her “flowering plums have no ‘buzz’ about them when she walks by. Even (her) rosemary is not a buzz. A few yes, but not nearly the normal. Why is this year different?”

The Sand Crab Classic Perch Tournament draws a large crowd each year, and the 11th annual event was no different.

In the four years since Marcy McQuillan opened Nitless Noggins, a Scotts Valley salon dedicated solely to destroying and removing head lice, she has gained international notoriety as an expert, being interviewed by media outlets across the country and globe on the subject.

Fans of locally sourced food rejoice: The Scotts Valley Farmers’ Market will be returning for its fifth season next Saturday.