GINA PARKINSON wonders what she should do after discovering a wasps’ nest in her garden. Should she be alarmed or pleased?

COINCIDENCES happen often in life, although we are always surprised when they do, and last week one happened to me.

Dr George McGavin, the enthusiastic TV naturalist, was on one of the Hampton Court Flower Show programmes extolling the virtues of making our garden wildlife friendly and offering particular support to wasps.

Throw away your insect sprays and encourage these stripy creatures; they will clear your garden of pests for free he told us.

This seemed a good idea in principle, but wasps are also pesky and it is no fun getting stung. The next day I was in the garden with my daughter when she spotted something in a shrub and wondered what this large rugby-ball shaped object could be.

It was a wasp’s nest.

With George’s words in my ears, I was ready to welcome this insect family into the garden and we watched the wasps coming and going from the entrance at the base of their nest.

Wasps generate a negative reaction from most people, probably due to having been stung or annoyed by them on a summer picnic.

However, ours are in their natural habitat, their home built from layer upon layer of chewed fragments of wood by the workers. It is fixed around the branches of Photinia davidiana ‘Palette’ almost hidden by its variegated foliage.

Social wasps live in colonies started by a queen, who builds a small nest to house her first brood of grubs. These become workers and the colony and nest grows from there with the single queen laying all the eggs, while the rest of the colony collect food and building materials and do the work in the nest.

The adults feed on sweet things such as fruit and nectar but the grubs are carnivores and will devour thousands of insects between them as they grow.

Once the weather gets frosty, the colonies break up and a few of the young queens live through the winter hibernating in log piles and sheds and other sheltered places.

They emerge in spring to start the cycle again. So should I be worried about this nest? Most people think I should and a trawl on the internet brought up lots of advice on how to kill the occupants and get rid of their home. However, encouraged by Dr McGavin and the positive reaction from one friend, I’m going with my instinct to leave them be.

At least for the moment.


Weekend catch-up...

BBC Radio 4 is genius at making short programmes on an infinite number of subjects and on Monday I happened to catch one of them.

It was the first in a five-part series entitled A Guide to Garden Wildlife, in which Brett Westwood and naturalist Phil Gates explore the creatures found in gardens around Britain.

This programme looked at mini beasts found in log piles and long grass and the 15-minute slot was packed with details. So if you feel like putting up your feet for and enjoying the garden from the comfort of an armchair, give the programmes a listen on iPlayer.


Open gardens

Open Garden and Strawberry Tea.

Today

A Moor Monkton garden will be open today in aid of the churches at Moor Monkton and Hessay. The owners of Barley Mow, East Lane Moor Monkton last opened their garden in 2009 but have since then increased its size to an acre with a wild life pond and meadow land walk. A David Austin rose border has also been created. The garden is at its peak in July and August with vivid borders filled with a wide range of plants. Other things on show include climber draped trellis, trained apples and pears, an ornamental pond, greenhouses, vegetables and a number of unusual fruit species.

The garden will be open today from 1.30pm to 5.30pm and entry is £5 which includes a strawberry tea.

Tomorrow

In aid of the National Gardens Scheme

Goldsborough Hall, Church Street, Goldsborough, HG5 8NR, two miles south east of Knaresborough.

An 11-acre garden with Gertrude Jekyll inspired 120ft double borders, a lime tree walk planted in 1920, woodland walk and specimen trees. Open noon to 5pm, admission £5.

Low Sutton, Sutton Lane, Masham, HG4 4PB. Six-acre smallholding started in 2007 with a concentric circular floral colour wheel surrounded by roses and clematis, fruit and vegetables in raised beds, perennial border, grasses and a fernery. Open 11am-5pm, combined admission with Sutton Grange £5.

The Nursery, 15 Knapton Lane, Acomb, YO26 5PX, off Beckfield Lane 2.5miles west of York centre. One-acre productive organic garden with more than 50 varieties of apples and pears together with many different vegetables. There is a surprise at every turn in this garden, including chickens and a large greenhouses.

Ornamental planting adds colour and provides a habitat for wildlife.

Open 1pm-5pm, admission £3.

Also open Wednesday, 2pm to 8pm when there will be tomato tasting.

Rewela Cottage, Skewsby, YO61 4SG, four miles north of Sheriff Hutton. Three-quarter-acre garden with unusual tree, shrubs and architectural plants. There is also a pond and pergola, sunken garden and breeze house and more than 130 heucheras, 40 penstemson and 40 hostas. Rhododendrons, magnolias and azaleas of interest in May. Open 11am-5pm, admission £3.50.

Rudston House, Long Street, Rudston, YO25 4UH, five miles west of Driffield. Three-acre garden with old trees, lawns, redesigned rose garden, clipped box hedges, wild life area, vegetables, greenhouses and a short woodland walk. Open 11am-5pm, admission £5.

Stamford Bridge Gardens, YO41 1PD, seven miles east of York on the A166 to Bridlington. Three gardens open in the village. The plantsman’s garden at Grove Lodge has a large collection of plants grown from seed or cuttings together with fruit, vegetables and a greenhouse.

Mill Timber has a sloping perennial border, planters and hanging baskets filled with summer plants and is sheltered by matures along one side.

The terraced garden at Mill House sweeps down to the River Derwent and has a pond and water feature with a bridge and mixed borders and shrubs. Open noon to 5pm, combined admission £5.


Gardening TV and radio

Tomorrow

8am, BBC Radio Humberside, The Great Outdoors. With Blair Jacobs and Doug Stewart.

8.30am, BBC2, Monty Don’s French Gardens. How their love of food has influenced Gallic gardens.

9am, BBC Radio York, Julia Lewis.

Out and about in the gardens of North Yorkshire.

9am, BBC Radio Leeds, Tim Crowther with Joe Maiden.

2pm, BBC R4, Gardeners’ Question Time. A postbag edition from the GQT potting shed at Sparsholt College in Hampshire.

Monday to Friday

1.45pm, BBC R4, Plants: from Roots to Riches. After catching up on last week’s R4 wildlife in the garden series there is a new 25 part series to enjoy in which Kathy Willis presents a history of our changing relationship with plants.

Tuesday

8pm, ITV, Love Your Garden. Alan Titchmarsh and his team sort out a garden in Bideford.

Thursday 7pm, BBC2, The RHS Flower Show Tatton Park. Monty Don and co explore the exhibits at this year’s show.

Friday

3pm, BBC R4, Gardeners’ Question Time. From Chester Zoo.

7.30pm, BBC2, The RHS Flower Show Tatton Park. Growing fruit and veg at home and the Young Designer of the Year hopefuls.

8.30pm, BBC2, Gardeners’ World.

Carol Klein, below, meets a lavender expert and Joe visits the garden of Roger Saul, founder of the Mulberry company.