The Carrot Tops Allotment Blog!

You may have seen on Instagram lately that I built a bug hotel, so I thought I’d go into a bit more detail as to how I did it.

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This all part of the wildlife space I hope to create and was one of the first things I was looking to build – mainly because I’ve never built one before.

What and why have a bug hotel?

An insect hotel, also known as a bug hotel or insect house, is a manmade structure created to provide shelter for insects. They can come in a variety of shapes and sizes 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Insect_hotel

After I cleared the space, I was left with some scrap wood which is slowly rotting and I was confident that I can make something rustic and useful.

I’m hoping to attract pollinators and insects that will do me a turn, with keeping the ecosystem of the plot in check. Ladybirds and solitary bees in particular, are a desired visitor.

The base

I’ve started with two 3ft(ish) logs, which have each rotted on one side, as the base of the bug hotel. Woodlice have already gone to town here, and they will no doubt continue to do their work, of which there is plenty to do.

I dug a hole to sit the logs in and steady them together. I then buried the rotted sides into each other, to help create a gap for insects to stay in.

Bug hotels come in all shapes and sizes, but I really wanted mine to be a feature of sorts, meaning the logs on their own wasn’t really enough for what I wanted to achieve.

I decided to build a top section, and one of the main obstacles here was getting a level(ish) base to build upon, something easier said than done, when the top ends of the logs aren’t the same in any way possible.

I nailed in some sections of pallet wood, to create a new level to to the bug hotel.

The house

Once I had a level base, I could really let my creative juices flow and decided to build a triangular structure to layer smaller logs, twigs and other bits of wood within.

I used old pallet wood, to build two triangles and used some nails to tack everything together. It being a bug hotel means, that it doesn’t have to be perfect by a million miles – if anything, my poor DIY skills adds to the feature.

Filling the house

I had some old perspex laying around, which just so happened to be the correct size for a roof, so I tacked this on to help keep everything dry.

I then filled the triangle with smaller, inch thick logs and I packed them in as much as I could into the triangle.

There was a sizeable gap between the triangle and the logs, and I had some half rotted railway sleeper that fit perfectly into that space. I cut them to length and knocked them in with a hammer. It was pretty tight and with the last tap, I was convinced the triangle would pop off.

I drilled some holes into the sleepers using the biggest drill bit I had to help with creating more habitats. I then stuffed the remaining gaps with older bits of wood and pieces of scrap.

There was still a decent gap between the two logs, so I stuffed this with more wood consisting of twigs, off cuts and other small bits of log. Woodlice have already inhabited this section, so hopefully they’ll appreciate a bit extra.

And with that – the bug hotel is complete!

Keeping in mind that this was built with no real plan in mind and a hotchpotch of materials – I’m more than impressed with myself with how this has turned out.

Not only does this look like a great feature, but it will also hopefully make for a productive bug hotel.

Building this was a great mental exercise, and so I would encourage anyone who has some old wood laying around to give building a bug hotel a try.