Create ideal conditions
Warm, narrow tubes offer wild bees an ideal nesting place. If you do not want to use loose filling material such as bamboo sticks, you can also drill the holes in clay or wood. However, there are a few things you need to consider, especially with the latter:
- The right wood
- The direction of drilling
- Diameter and depth
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Choice of wood type
Soft wood from conifers is very prone to cracking. It is therefore better to use wood from fruit trees that you may even cultivate in the garden. Brittle wood not only absorbs moisture, but also endangers the insects.
Before filling the insect hotel, make sure that your hardwood is well dried.
The right drilling direction
Never drill parallel to the grain, because cracks will also form in this case. Sharp edges should be sanded off with sandpaper.
Diameter and depth
There are so many types of insects, all of which have certain advantages. It would be a shame if only a small part of them move into your insect hotel (€ 8.87 on Amazon *). Promote biodiversity by offering the animals holes of different diameters.
Much more important, however, is the depth of the holes drilled. This should be at least 6 cm. Otherwise, it will be easy for birds to peck the larvae from their nesting holes. That is why the holes should never be drilled through completely, but rather have a back wall.
