The insects in our gardens are vital for a balanced eco system. Lots of gardens are pruned to within an inch of their lives which is not necessarily what insects need. Creating a wildlife garden is incredibly helpful to our garden friends, but if you don't want to go the whole hog and create a garden for wildlife, you can start small by creating little insect hotels. They are great for all sorts of bugs and a fantastic way to engage children in the garden and help them learn about our wildlife.
Insects in the garden are a sign that all is well in the world! They can signify the start of spring and the coming of winter and give a good indication on the health of your garden. They need nectar to feed and survive, along with water, but they also need places to hide, shelter, breed and hibernate. Some bees nest in the ground during winter by burying into lawns and flower beds and some make homes in holes in walls or trees. Spiders and other insects like ladybirds, butterflies and beetles, make homes in piles of wood and twigs, leaf piles and other debris in the garden where they will hibernate over winter. Butterflies will lay their eggs ready for next spring and you might find their larvae in flower pots of old compost. In this guide we show you how to make a simple bug hotel for all sorts of insects from stuff you probably have lying around the garden.
There are lots of options for bug hotels. They don't have to be big or expensive or elaborate. Sometimes the simpler the better.
Lets make your garden insect friendly
The Pot
A really cheap and quick option for an insect hotel for bugs like spiders, ladybirds and beetles, is to find an old terracotta pot, turn it upside down and stuff it with straw and leaves. The hole in the bottom will act as the entrance, terracotta holds heat and repeals water, and the inside stuffing will create the warm snug home insects need over winter. You can either leave it on the ground or string it up in a tree or hang it from a hook.
The Log Pile
Log and leaf piles are probably the quickest and cheapest thing to create as they are free using using organic matter from your garden. Simply gather fallen leaves, small logs and large twigs, pile the logs and twigs together in a fairly hap-hazard way, and stuff the gaps with leaves to make it cosy. Find a shady and quiet space in the garden to build your pile. This is great for centipedes, woodlice and beetles who like to burrow into decaying wood. Log piles may also attract birds, frogs and hedgehogs looking for a tasty snack!
Pine Cone Homes
Open pine cones can make superb little homes for insects. Gather some pine cones and bundle them together closely so the scales interlock a bit. Stuff some dried leaves in the gaps. Place the pine cones in a quiet corner of your garden shed or garage. Great for ladybirds and lacewings who will love to crawl into the crevices and hide among the leaves.
The Drilled Hotel
If you have any spare logs lying around, you can make a really good bee hotel by simply drilling holes in the tops of the logs and standing them up on end or stuffing a group of them on their side in a container like a large flower pot or crate. Make sure you drill a good depth - the full length of the drill bit would be best. There is no need to do anything else. Solitary bees will make their homes in here. They close the end of the hole with mud and hibernate until spring.
The Ultimate Hotel
If you have the space and some spare cash, the best creation is to make a full insect hotel that provides a home for all sorts of insects in one place. These can be small hotels that attach to a fence or tree, or really elaborate constructions. You can be as creative as you like and go as big as you like! We've included some pictures of some beautiful insect houses for inspiration at the end of this page.
And don't forget that encouraging insects to your garden is also a way of providing food for other wildlife like birds and hedgehogs, but also enables predatory insects to eat the aphids that ruin your plants! Its a win win for all
Let’s get building
Make the Structure
The essentials to building the ultimate bug hotel is to get the right structure for your project. You can use wood offcuts as long as they aren't coated in toxic paints like creosote, pallets etc for your outer structure. Make sure its sturdy and well constructed. Wood left outside will expand and contract with the rain and heat, and poorly constructed houses will eventually fall apart.
You can see the picture on the right has been constructed with fairly thick wood and has three main sections. The roof makes the fourth section. A roof is really important and it needs to be secure. Apex roofs, like the picture here, are good for small houses and allow the rain to run off and away from the nesting areas. The roof should overlap the sides and the front/ back by a few centimetres. If you can't make this out of weather proof wood, you can treat the wood first to make it last longer, but make sure you leave the wood for a few weeks before using it to allow the toxins to evaporate. You could off course felt the roof too!
Stuff the spaces
Next you need to stuff your sections with different materials for different insects.
Use a mix of materials like pinecones, twigs, leaves, straw, even corks with holes drilled work well. Wooden straws are also a great alternative to bamboo sticks. You can buy bundles of wooden straws here. To keep everything in place you can place chicken wire over the front of your sections. Staple in place. This will also stop large creatures like birds and squirrels from pecking out the insects or the materials inside. Place the structure in an appropriate place. Small ones can be attached to fences or trees. Larger structures are good in corners of the garden, somewhere warm but sheltered.
Below are some images of insect hotels and some more elaborate structures if you feel like being really creative!
Now that you've made an insect house, read more of our guides to learn how to make the rest of your garden wildlife friendly
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