I have searched here and googled this and the answers are all over the place. The rain, fog, and not enough sun have taken a toll on the buttercup plants and I am not sure if there is an insect problem as well, as I can't get to the base of the plants. The vines went nuts over the summer and it is one tangled mess out there, but there are a lot of squash in various stages of maturity. Now in the middle of the patch the leaves are limp and turning brown and a good deal of the rest are hit with mildew.

Mostly I need to know at this point is if the squash passes the finger nail test and the stem is corky can I harvest now before they perhaps get ruined. I want to freeze them.

One place says don't harvest until after the first light frost, another says not to let the frost hit them, another says harvest as soon as the stem gets corky and they pass the fingernail test and let them sit in the field a few days.......

What would you do? I would really appreciate your opinion.