Growing up my mom always had a garden of some sort, which now feeds into my “plant lady” title quite nicely. When it comes to plants I am not an expert by any shot, but I do enjoy learning about them and sometimes that means the entire ecosystem. Having worked at an apple stand for years I definitely understand the importance of bees! Don’t worry I won’t get on my soap box to tell you about how bee’s are so small yet mighty in our world, but I will say they need a little help right now. So with that I decided to make a little bee hotel to hang in my mom’s garden. I know this might seem a little random to DIY but when I went online and saw the price on these little homes I quickly became inspired to make my own! There are lots of different materials you can use to make your bee hotel, I would say the most popular is wood or bamboo. For the bamboo just make sure they are not blocked with dried pith or have solid nodes. I scored some materials from the dollars store and thrift store and was able to make mine for about $4!
Supplies:
cylinder tube- I scored this in a scrap pile from ReStore
bamboo stakes
tape measure
rubber bands
sisal rope
miter saw
First measure the length of your tube so that you can measure and cut the bamboo stakes to the same length.
Once you have all the bamboo stakes cut to the same length of your tube, give them a bear hug and bundle them together.(I threw on some gloves so I could avoid splinters). I held them with one hand and then slipped a few rubber bands quickly over. I know that over time the rubber bands will break down but they were the easiest way to quickly bundle without extra hands. SO to make sure that the bundle is secure longterm tie with twine or rope as well.
I made sure to distribute my larger bamboo stakes amongst the smaller ones to create a balanced bundle. Next I tied the sisal rope through the cylinder for an easy to hang bee house. Once I scout the perfect branch I plan to tie down the house with more rope so it doesn’t sway.
Once all tight and bundled I slid the metal cylinder over the bundle for the perfect fit! (keep the sisal rope inside to hang still)
Now it’s time to find a good spot to hang your bee home! Here is a check of list to keep in mind for scouting the perfect spot….
– position in full sun
– hang facing south east or south
– needs to be at least a yard or so off the ground
– a branch without a lot of vegetation blocking the home (aka tunnel entrances)
– ideally you should not have the bee house swinging and swaying in the wind so be sure to latch it down to the branch better than my photo (mine is a gift for my mom so that’s why I didn’t latch it yet)
We love bee’s!!
xo
Sam