Wasps

Most folk are a little afraid of wasps. They have a reputation for being meaner than bees. Bees give us honey and a bee will die if it stings someone so its a last option for a bee. Wasps on the other hand can sting as many times as it wants. Today when I was checking my compost bins I discovered that one of them has become the home to a beautiful wasps nest. I didn't get a long look at it because wasps can be very defensive of their home. I put the lid back on quietly and let it be.
Wasps actually do a lot of good in the garden. They are hunters and will take a lot of the pests that do damage in the garden. Their nests look papery and in a sense they are. The wasps will chew bits of wood and then use that and saliva to build the nests.
So in a way, the wasp is as much a gardeners friend as the ladybird. If the wasps nest is out of the way, then leave it alone. Over the summer they'll kill many garden pests.
In the winter, quietly check the nest. The wasps will have left. The queen will have holed up somewhere to sleep out the cold and the workers will have died. If the nest looks empty, take a closer look. It is amazingly fragile and beautiful.
Perhaps wasps aren't that scary after all.