Offer solitary bees five-star accommodation with an easy-to-make bee hotel. Solitary bees aren’t like honeybees that live in hives. As their name suggests, they make their nests on their own and lay their eggs in tunnels, such as in dead wood or hard soil.
Why Are Bee Hotels Important?
A bee hotel mimics these conditions. You can make your bee hotel whenever the mood takes you, but spring is when potential residents are queueing up for the best new abode. Sit and watch adult female bees find the nest on sunny days in spring. You’ll know they’re nesting if you see them flying in with pollen (some carry it on their bellies), with blobs of mud to create cell walls along the tube, or with bits of leaf (these are the leaf-cutter bees).
You Will Need...
The following items are widely available at craft stores, hardware shops and supermarkets. You can even buy pre-cut tubes specifically for use in bee houses!
- Bamboo canes (cut to 15cm)
- Sticks
- Craft tape
- Plastic bottle
- Craft knife
- String
- Junior hack saw.
How to Make the Bee House
The process is simple and easy! Just follow the steps below and you’ll have a lovely bee home to hang up in your garden!
- Cut the top off the plastic bottle so that remainder of the bottle is about a centimetre longer than your bamboo cane
- Use the craft tape to cover the sharp edges
- Place the canes into the bottle until it is full.
- Use sticks to push in between the bamboo canes to pack it tight.
- Use string to hang the bottle up in a sunny spot on a tree, shed or wall. Make sure it tilts downwards slightly to keep rain out.
