Wasp Control for Sissinghurst Restaurants, Pubs and Commercial Premises
Cream teas, jam pots and tables under the roses are lovely until the wasps notice, and a tea room needs a gentle, unfussy answer that keeps its customers calm.
Scones, jam and a quiet garden
A tea room is about slowing down. Customers linger over a pot of tea, a scone with jam and cream, and perhaps a slice of fruit cake. The garden tables are full on fine afternoons, and the conversation is unhurried. A wasp interrupts all of that, and the longer people sit, the more likely they are to notice it.
For a tea room in Sissinghurst, the challenge is to keep the gentle atmosphere while dealing with a very practical problem. Jam, cream and sugar are exactly the foods that wasps seek. The colony reaches its peak in August, with anywhere between 2,000 and 10,000 wasps or more, and the demand for sweet food is greatest then.
Tea rooms need quiet solutions. Heavy-handed measures, such as spraying or swatting, would ruin the mood and offer no lasting benefit.
It also pays to think about the people who work in the tea room. Waiting staff carry trays across the garden dozens of times, and a flustered wasp encounter with a full teapot is a recipe for scalds as well as stings. Ask them to move slowly and to put a tray down rather than swing it.
Looking for the nest around a garden
A tea room garden is usually full of plants, climbing roses, fruit trees and old walls. These are charming for guests and also good for wasps. Take a look at the garden before opening, with a cup of tea in hand, if you like.
- Climbing plants against the wall of the building, especially where they meet the eaves.
- Compost bins, log piles and unused corners.
- Old fruit trees, windfalls and the grass beneath them.
- The roof, chimney and guttering of the main building.
- Stone walls with loose mortar, and the base of garden steps.
- Outbuildings, sheds and the greenhouse.
If wasps are heading to one place in a steady stream, mark it from a distance and rearrange the tables. Do not prune, move or poke anything nearby.
Service that keeps wasps away from the cake
A few small changes make a big difference to the experience. Serve jam and cream in small covered pots. Use cake domes on every table, and put the lids on sugar bowls. Clear plates quickly and wipe sticky surfaces. Place the used crockery tray out of sight and cover it with a cloth.
Serve cold drinks in glasses with a lid or straw. Keep the bins at the edge of the garden and empty them often. Fallen fruit must be cleared each day.
Please avoid household sprays. They are not intended for use near food and drink, and a cloud of spray over a table of scones will upset the guests. The nest is the real issue, and a spray does not touch it. Guests who are worried can be offered an indoor table, which is normally appreciated.
Keep a small supply of lidded jugs for milk and cold water, because open jugs on a table attract wasps surprisingly quickly. If your tea room has a plant sales corner, check the labels and pots for sticky residue too, since spilt juice or sugar syrup on a shelf can pull wasps through the whole building.
A quiet treatment
Wasp Exterminator Kent treats nests at tea rooms, cafés, restaurants, shops and homes. You pay a flat £120 for each nest, which includes one visit guaranteed, and a second nest on the same site is £60 additional. You will not be charged a call-out fee, and no extras are added for where the nest is or when we attend.
We work seven days a week and offer same-day service, with evening and weekend appointments, so a technician can come when the garden is empty. Customers need never know that anything happened. The technician who attends is fully insured and qualified, and they carry out safe and effective work.
Tell us about any restricted areas, delicate plants or gates, so that the technician takes care of the garden. At the time of booking, ask whether the empty nest can be taken down afterwards.
Telling your customers and your regulars
Tea rooms thrive on goodwill, and regulars appreciate honesty. A short note on the menu or a chalkboard saying that there is a wasp nest being treated this week, and that tables have been moved for comfort, is usually met with understanding.
Brief your waiting staff. They should offer indoor seats, avoid swatting and be ready with a calm line. If a customer is stung, they should know where the first aid kit is and what to do: wash the area, remove the sting if visible, and use a cold pack. Emergency help by calling 999 is needed if there is swelling of the face, lips or throat, wheezing or difficulty breathing, dizziness or a widespread rash.
Mention any customer allergy to the manager so that the table can be placed indoors.
Booking from the tea room
Note down where the wasps are going, your quiet hours and a name for the technician to ask for. If anyone you work with is allergic to wasp stings, tell us at the time of booking and the visit can be prioritised.
Phone 01622 410 019, or use the form on the contact page, and either route works for an urgent job outside office hours.
After the visit, carry on with the tidy routine until the end of September, as visiting wasps may still be attracted to jam and cream.
If your tea room is housed in an old building with thick walls and a roof of many angles, tell the technician in advance. It helps them to plan the visit and to bring the right equipment.
Take a few photographs of the garden each week during summer. A new bare patch in a flower bed or an unusual gathering of wasps near the same shed door will show up on a picture before it is obvious to the eye.
Wasps on your property in Sissinghurst?
Fixed price £120 per nest, no call-out charge, same-day service available.