Sunday 24 May 2015

Building a Bug Hotel - 24/5/2015

I'd been thinking about building a bug hotel for some time and whilst looking at ideas on the internet I came across a 'How to Build a Bug Hotel' video on YouTube by the Wildlife Gadget Man.



After watching his video I was inspired to build something very similar and over the course of a few months I gathered together all the materials I would need to make it.  

Once I had my materials I then set about building it. I've documented the building process here in this post, I hope it serves to help inspire others into building a Bug Hotel in their garden.

 Main Materials

20 x Grey Reconstituted 
Stone Concrete Common Bricks
(H)65mm x (W)103mm x (L)215mm

5 x sheets of Plyboard
(L)430mm x (W) 380mm (w) x (H)9mm

Other Materials
in no particular order

Some old Tree Roots removed from Garden

Some small rocks

Some Chinese Rainbow cobbles

Some Wooden Blocks
with varous size holes drilled into them

Bamboo Cane of various sizes 
cut and crammed 
into some old square drainpipe

Plenty of Drinking Straws 
crammed into old plastic piping

My girls agreed to trim the straws
 for me if I gave each of them a pound coin

Here is my youngest Daughter
making sure the straws are all the same length

Plenty of trimmed straws now

The last few straws and a pound well earned!

Some Wildflower Seed
for the top of the Bug Hotel

Some old Toilet Roll Tubes

Straws cut, some offcut of carpet rolled up, 
some corrogated cardboard 
rolled up into some pieces of 
old square drainpipe and a plastic bottle.

Building the Bug Hotel

Bottom Bricks layed down on flat surface

Bottom Layer consists of
Small Rocks and Pine Cones

Next Layer consists of
Old Tree Roots, grass and leaves

Here is my eldest Daughter adding
the old tree roots whilst trying
not to put her foot into Wildlife Pond Project #1

Next Layer consists of
Some Rolled up Carpet, Stacked Slate, 
Grass and an Heavy Duty Rubble Sack

Next Layer consists of
Drink Straws, Pine Cones, Sawdust, 
Grass and old Toilet Roll Tubes

Next Layer consists of
Bamboo Canes, Wood Blocks
 and Rolled up Corrogated Cardboard

Here my daughter is filling
in the gaps with leaves and grass

Leaves now added

Grass now added

Hey up we are being watched!

The top layer consisting of
a planter tray screwed to the plyboard, 
filled with compost and topped off
with a sprinkling of some wildflower seed mix.

We added the cobbles 
to help weigh the top down.

The final result

A closer view

A view of the Bug Hotel from the Garden

17 comments:

  1. Your bug hotel looks wonderful Ian, saving my bean tins as we speak. Great to see your children getting involved , have given you a mention on my blog. Are you going to take part in the garden biobliz next weekend http://www.gardenbioblitz.org/. think you should girls would love it :)
    Amanda xx

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    1. Thanks Amanda. I only saw your comment here after I'd saw your post in which you gave me a mention, cheers for that. I'll have a nose at the Bioblitz website.

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  2. What a hotel too - love the idea of the wildflower seeds for a roof - it is going to be exciting to see who takes up residence first - I have no doubt you'll be full up in no time!

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    1. Thanks Jennifer, it certainly will be exciting, looking forward to seeing what moves in.

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  3. That's brilliant! Well done!

    I like watching wildlife gadget man on youtube!

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    1. Thanks Louise. Yep his videos are great.

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  4. Top bug hotel Ian, and how lovely the girls helped make it (although you did well getting them for a pound each- my kids won't budge for less than a tenner these days :o) ).

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  5. Excellent - love this bug hotel - well done! :-)

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  6. Hi Ian. Thanks for your comment. I love your bug hotel. It's so ingenious and looks great by the pond.

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  7. That's a great bug hotel, I try to get the cubs and brownies to improve the one we have at work this summer

    Cheers

    DaveyMan

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  8. Looks like it was fun to make, I like the variety of materials you used, Hope lots of bugs make it their home

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    1. Thanks, yes it was good fun putting it all together. I hope lots of bugs make it their home too.

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