Page 76 - 2021 Almanac

Build a Bug Hotel
Insects and spiders are gardeners’ friends! Encouraging small creatures such as bees, beetles and woodlice into your garden at home or school will help the plants to grow – so you’ll be doing everyone a favour if you build a lovely shelter for the minibeasts outside.
You will need:
Bricks with holes in Planks of wood Dead wood
Bark
Hollow bamboo canes
Dead hollow stems from plants
Straw
Moss
Dry leaves Woodchips
Old terracotta plant pots
Old roof tiles
Pine cones
Sand
Soil
Roofing felt
1 Choose the spot where you want your hotel to be. Damp places are
best for most bugs, but if you want to attract bees you’ll need a sunnier spot.
2 Put some bricks on the ground to make a strong base, leaving some gaps between them – an H-shape is best.
3 Lay planks of wood across the bricks to make a ‘floor’.
4 Cover the planks with dead wood and bark – beetles, centipedes and woodlice will love this. Spiders, too!
5 Put some more bricks on the edges of the ‘floor’ to add another level and lay more planks of wood across them.
6 Pack this next level with bamboo or other hollow stems for insects to crawl into.
7 Keep adding layers filled with other materials until you have the kind of hotel you want.
8 To add a roof, you can nail roofing felt on to the last area of wood – ask an adult to help.
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