Hello garden enthusiasts,
Last year, I spent time preparing a poor grassland area. About 40m² (430 ft²) was fully dug up, edging stones were installed, and mixed with sand. Now, I want to place an insect hotel in the middle. Unfortunately, I have no experience with this yet. I know there are ready-made hotels available, but some are built completely incorrectly and therefore not used by the insects.
Has anyone here dealt with this before and can share some advice? Or are there websites where especially good information can be found?
Since I’m just starting, I am wondering, for example:
- What is the best orientation to the sun?
- Should I design separate compartments for each type of insect (such as bee section, beetle section, lacewing section, etc.)?
- Can wild bees be housed together with other species? Or do some always need their own separate “home”?
- Where can I order "building materials" affordably?
I appreciate any advice!
Last year, I spent time preparing a poor grassland area. About 40m² (430 ft²) was fully dug up, edging stones were installed, and mixed with sand. Now, I want to place an insect hotel in the middle. Unfortunately, I have no experience with this yet. I know there are ready-made hotels available, but some are built completely incorrectly and therefore not used by the insects.
Has anyone here dealt with this before and can share some advice? Or are there websites where especially good information can be found?
Since I’m just starting, I am wondering, for example:
- What is the best orientation to the sun?
- Should I design separate compartments for each type of insect (such as bee section, beetle section, lacewing section, etc.)?
- Can wild bees be housed together with other species? Or do some always need their own separate “home”?
- Where can I order "building materials" affordably?
I appreciate any advice!
So:
Great that you ask first before, with good intentions, something unsuitable gets built.
The Nabu website is quite good; it covers the most important points.
nabu.de/Tiere-und-pflanzen/Insekten-und-spinnen/Insekten-helfen/00959.HTML
Otherwise, I like the site by Werner David, "naturgartenfreunde.de".
At: naturgartenfreunde.de/wildbienen/nisthilfen
there is a rather long, detailed, and sometimes flowery description of how to do it and why most ready-made nesting aids are usually useless.
For those who don’t want to read through all that, here is a brief summary:
1. Lacewing box: in red, and at least 30cm (12 inches) per side (including the opening side), otherwise it won’t be accepted.
Opening facing northeast – which doesn’t really work for bees.
2. Butterfly fans are nonsense; no butterfly will go inside.
3. Pine cones or bark pieces are just as unnecessary – at most a spider might get lost inside, but they find enough other places anyway.
4. Untreated hollow bricks are worthless; nothing goes inside. If you have them, you can fill them with hollow stems and seal the back with plaster or clay. Then they become usable. Deburr the bricks first.
Interlocking clay tiles (search for “Strangfalzziegel”) have the correct diameter and are often used.
4. Bees:
- Never drill holes into the end grain (where you see the growth rings); drill at 90° to it. The end grain often has cracks and tunnels become leaky.
- Use only hardwoods.
- Drill holes with varying diameters, about 10cm (4 inches) deep, and always close the back of the holes.
- Bundle hollow stems etc. and press them into a layer of plaster or clay at the back.
- Always deburr wooden stems/tubes.
- Location:
Sunny, dry, sheltered from wind, facing southeast to southwest. Protected from direct rain (to avoid mold). A small roof is fine, but it should not be too large to avoid casting too much shade. Plexiglass works well, for example. Not directly on the ground, always hang it (but not swinging freely).
Keep the flight path clear.
If the nesting aid is occupied and then used as a hunting perch by birds, you can protect it by stretching some chicken wire at a small distance in front.
You can also attach pithy stems individually and vertically to a fence, for example. Many species also prefer to nest in sandy, bare ground...
I could go on, but I think I have covered the most important points now.
Oh yes, and the back... well, roofing felt, for example, or a natural wood stain, beeswax, or linseed oil (anything non-toxic and without off-gassing).
Great that you ask first before, with good intentions, something unsuitable gets built.
The Nabu website is quite good; it covers the most important points.
nabu.de/Tiere-und-pflanzen/Insekten-und-spinnen/Insekten-helfen/00959.HTML
Otherwise, I like the site by Werner David, "naturgartenfreunde.de".
At: naturgartenfreunde.de/wildbienen/nisthilfen
there is a rather long, detailed, and sometimes flowery description of how to do it and why most ready-made nesting aids are usually useless.
For those who don’t want to read through all that, here is a brief summary:
1. Lacewing box: in red, and at least 30cm (12 inches) per side (including the opening side), otherwise it won’t be accepted.
Opening facing northeast – which doesn’t really work for bees.
2. Butterfly fans are nonsense; no butterfly will go inside.
3. Pine cones or bark pieces are just as unnecessary – at most a spider might get lost inside, but they find enough other places anyway.
4. Untreated hollow bricks are worthless; nothing goes inside. If you have them, you can fill them with hollow stems and seal the back with plaster or clay. Then they become usable. Deburr the bricks first.
Interlocking clay tiles (search for “Strangfalzziegel”) have the correct diameter and are often used.
4. Bees:
- Never drill holes into the end grain (where you see the growth rings); drill at 90° to it. The end grain often has cracks and tunnels become leaky.
- Use only hardwoods.
- Drill holes with varying diameters, about 10cm (4 inches) deep, and always close the back of the holes.
- Bundle hollow stems etc. and press them into a layer of plaster or clay at the back.
- Always deburr wooden stems/tubes.
- Location:
Sunny, dry, sheltered from wind, facing southeast to southwest. Protected from direct rain (to avoid mold). A small roof is fine, but it should not be too large to avoid casting too much shade. Plexiglass works well, for example. Not directly on the ground, always hang it (but not swinging freely).
Keep the flight path clear.
If the nesting aid is occupied and then used as a hunting perch by birds, you can protect it by stretching some chicken wire at a small distance in front.
You can also attach pithy stems individually and vertically to a fence, for example. Many species also prefer to nest in sandy, bare ground...
I could go on, but I think I have covered the most important points now.
Oh yes, and the back... well, roofing felt, for example, or a natural wood stain, beeswax, or linseed oil (anything non-toxic and without off-gassing).
H
hampshire13 Jan 2020 17:30We attended a beekeeping group with expertise in wild bees for the first time on Saturday, for a similar reason. I will report back.
So far, we have repeatedly used simple DIY store bee hotels. They were always full by the second year – apparently, the location had become well known.
So far, we have repeatedly used simple DIY store bee hotels. They were always full by the second year – apparently, the location had become well known.