IT IS just as well I've done my First Aid training. Most of our incidents involve wasp stings, pruned fingers or bumped heads, but this week I had to literally scrape the receptionist off the floor.

She soon came round muttering that there was something nasty in the post and pointed a wobbly finger towards a half opened package on the main desk.

All my scary mail normally comes in brown envelopes with see-through windows, but this was a jiffy bag, so I felt quite intrigued to find out what it was. As I picked up the parcel I could hear a strangled whimper: "Take it outside, don't open it here."

As I didn't want the casualty to deteriorate any further I duly took myself and the mystery parcel out the front door. Peering inside I caught sight of a large pair of insect antennae waving back at me. It was something living. I carefully tore open the envelope. There, encased in a plastic container, was the most enormous wasp-like creature staring right back at me. It was about three times larger than a wasp, but of similar colour, and had a huge, inch-long spike at its tail end. The letter enclosed stated that the gentleman from Bishop Auckland had found it in his garden and that he wanted me identify it.

Although ferocious-looking, the insect in question was actually quite harmless. It was a Wood Wasp, or Horntail (Urocerus gigas Siricidae), part of the Saw Fly family, and the large spike isn't a sting but an ovipositor. It uses it to drill into tree trunks and deposit its eggs deep within the wood. The grubs stay in the wood for up to three years before they emerge as adults. They usually live in woods, but have slowly started making their way into the gardens of newer housing estates. The young hatch from the timber used to build the house frames.

We do get quite a lot of interesting samples sent for us to identify at Natures World and on the Sunday radio show. Most consist of discoloured or distorted leaves. I think this has to be the first live specimen sent through the post.

I do frequently come into work to find jam jars with frogs, moths and bugs to either identify or release. The most disgusting of these was a water-filled jar containing what looked like six or seven large, fat worms with long stringy tails.

These were rat-tailed maggots, which live in ponds. They use the stringy tail to suck down air from the surface. When they pupate, they turn into what is known as a drone fly, similar looking to a honeybee, but not as large and with no sting.

It just goes to show that we really do have some fascinating creatures in our garden environment. Many of them we can recognise and are quite familiar with, but there are an awful lot of unknowns out there. It is when we take the time to just sit, watch and observe the smaller things that we notice them.

If nothing else, it is a good excuse as any for staying out in the garden doing very little on a long summer evening.

JOBS TO DO Harvest courgettes Courgettes have recently put on tremendous growth spurts thanks to the warm but wet weather conditions. If you want lots of vegetables from a plant then make sure you pick them small, say six to nine inches long. Do this by gently twisting the courgette. This encourages greater production. If you prefer them larger (marrows), leave them on. You will get less but they will be bigger.

Fill border gaps At this time of year you may start to see gaps appearing in your borders. This may be from annuals that have died, perennials that have gone over or plants that just haven't covered as much ground as they were supposed to. These gaps can be filled with something cheap and cheerful like fuchsias, crocosmia, pot-mums or even Tagates or something.

Remove rose suckers Traditionally, these have seven leaves as opposed to the usual five found on new rose growth. There are, however, exceptions to this rule. Most suckers grow from below soil level and have loads of thorns on them. They drain energy from the rose and, if left, may destroy the prettiest part of the shrub, the graft with the nice flowers on. If you can, pull them away from the plant where it joins the stem below ground. This is more successful than simply cutting them off. I find little and often works best.

READERS' QUESTIONS Mr Peter Churchill has asked if you can cut down Hebes and when is the best time to do this? The Hebe is an extremely versatile plant. It is evergreen, has a variety of leaf colours and has a long flowering season. The flower colour can be anything from white to blue, to pink to purple. Butterflies love them. I wouldn't have a garden without one.

They most certainly can be cut down, quite severely if needs be. This is best done later in the year, around autumn once they have finished flowering. It is not impossible to cut at any other time, but you run the risk of the plant not flowering next spring. It will sprout and bush out from the stem. Anything that you have cut off can be plunged into soil and will root very easily.

Free ticket There is a free ticket to Preston Park Autumn Garden Festival to give away to the person who e-mails Brigid with the most interesting question.

P.S.

Brigid will answer more of your questions live on the radio on Sunday morning between 11.00 and 12.00, Radio Cleveland 95 FM.

You can contact Brigid at brigidpress67.freeserve.co.uk or write to her at Nature's World, Ladgate Lane, Acklam, Middlesbrough TS5 7YN.