Insect Hotel

Insects are the most diverse organisms worldwide and play a significant role in biodiversity.

Insects form the food foundation for many animal species such as birds, mice, and amphibians. But their importance does not end there! Insects are also essential for our nutrition as they pollinate most of our cultivated and wild plants by transferring pollen between them.

For insects to survive the gardens, they require a wide range of food throughout the year in the form of plants that produce nectar (“single-flowered varieties”). They also need habitats to find shelter and nest in. Ideal habitats provide different structures: dry plant stems, burrows in wood, a pile of brushwood, an empty snail shell, or sandy soil.

If these structures cannot be created in a garden or if existing insect habitats need to be expanded, “insect hotels” are a wonderful way to provide a home for wild bees and other insects.

How should an Insect Hotel be constructed? 

Weatherproof roof with an overhang of at least 10 cm
Closed back wall made of untreated wood (very important!)
Install metal mesh (1-2 cm width) with 5 cm of space for fillings, otherwise the defenseless hotel residents will be eaten by birds!

Fill the hotel with different materials:

Stones: Bricks like clay bee stones beaver tail roofing tiles
Plants: 
- Dry and loosely bundled hollow plant stems (reeds, various perennials, bamboo)
- Different diameters (3-9 mm)
- Max. Length 15-20 cm
- Make sure all cuts are smooth using garden, branch, or hedge shears
Wood: 
- Dry wood (untreated hardwood e.g. from fruit or maple trees)
- Please note that wood from conifers (e.g. pines, firs, cedars) is soft and fibrous and is rarely inhabited.
- Wood should be 15-20 cm thick.
- Drill holes should have diameters from 2-9 mm. Make sure to use sizes so different species can breed in them.
- The holes should be closed at the back. Please make sure to remove the drilling dust beforehand! Please do not use wood wool, wood chips, concrete (cinder) blocks or pinecones.

Additional Tips

Leave the insect hotel outdoors all year-round.
No cleaning required! Instead, replace the insect hotel after a few years.
Place the insect hotel in a sheltered location that is sunny and warm, facing southeast.
The hotel should be at least 1m above the ground so that water cannot splash into the chambers and cause damage.

Who lives where in the insect hotel?

Stone:

Red mason bees (Osmia bicornis) and woolly bees (Anthidium manicatum) create their nesting sites in hard, stony walls and rock crevices. The tree bumblebee (Bombus hypnorum) also likes to move in there.

Wood:

Mason bees (Osmia) prefer existing feeding passages (or boreholes) in dead wood for nesting. Wooden cracks or slats are inhabited by useful lacewings.

Plant stems:

Horned mason bees (Osmia cornifrons) nest in hollow plant stems. Useful earwigs feel comfortable in dry straw.