Friday 6th February 2026 - Gardening Club, Egyptian Queen, Money Raised and Refurbishments

On Tuesday afternoon, I went to the Overstrand Gardening Club’s first meeting of 2026.  Annual subscriptions of £15 were being collected plus there was the usual raffle.  On the subject of the raffle, last November I won the raffle, a £10 gardening voucher.  I used this to purchase an Amaryllis growing kit from Thistle and Tide in Cromer.  The bulb was truly spectacular, producing two spikes of buds, each with five blooms; I was well impressed.  The meeting’s speaker was Dr David Horsley, a retired botanist, who through his talks on Wildlife Gardens, is raising money for Norfolk Wildlife Trust.  David explained how we can attract various types of wildlife into our gardens through plantings, having a pond and setting aside an area for introducing rattle and other wild flowers.  I came away with mixed thoughts.  Firstly, a positive one, apart from wild area, which we feel could bring in unwanted bugs; our garden, is about as wildlife friendly as it can be.  Secondly and a somewhat negative thought.  David had covered bees, crickets, butterflies etc., therefore I thought he may be able to give me some advice about the queen wasp we are hosting.  I was totally disappointed when he told me he kills the queen wasps emerging from the piles of wood he brings in for his wood burner.  He justified this action by saying wasps’ sting.  Well really, who hasn’t been stung by a wasp sometime during their lives?  I explained the benefits provided by wasps but I think this fell on deaf ears.  Perhaps I should have recommended he had a chat with Dr Ian Bedford, who in May 2024 gave a very informative talk at the gardening club, about wasps.

As for our queen wasp, she continues to rest in our storm porch.  It’s been interesting to observe her.  When it’s very cold, she lies on her side with retracted wings, legs and antennae, giving the appearance of being dead but a few more degrees and these are unfurled and she is upright.  If and when we see the sun and the storm porch warms up, I expect she will start to move and even fly about, inside the bug trap.  This will be the time to let her go into a sheltered part of the garden.  I wonder, should she have a name?  Being a queen, Cleo seems appropriate, after the Egyptian Queen Cleopatra.

Although not intended specifically as a fund raiser, the Christmas Tree Festival, in St Martins Church raised an impressive £1,148.  £250 of this has been sent to St. Martin's Housing Trust in Norwich, which helps homeless people.  Thanks here to villagers Lynn and Jill for organising the festival.

Finally, after posing the question, in my blog for 29^th January, ‘Are the Council still planning to perform repairs to the sea wall?’, yesterday we saw North Norfolk District Council have put up notices at the top of the cliffs.  Barring any objections, refurbishments should go ahead.  The photo below provides more details.