Each Christmas, my sisters, mom and I do a handmade exchange. This year, with my dad’s help, I made bee hotels to gift and everyone loved them. I learned about bee hotels a few years ago when I attended a workshop with Edmonton & Area Land Trust in my city--this past summer, my bee hotel had residents!
These bee hotels were made with scrap cedar and logs from a pruned apple tree. You can fill in any of the spaces between logs and wood pieces with paper straws or with bamboo, but you don’t need to. I’ve seen some simple bee hotels that I think are cool, too: you can make them with just a can and paper straws (hello, Pinterest).
Alberta, the province where I live, is home to over 300 species of bees. Most of these bees are solitary. We rely on these bees to pollinate our plants including farm crops, vegetable gardens, and flower beds.
Solitary bees need our help because they face many challenges including harmful pesticides, habitat loss, and climate change. Big obstacles for tiny creatures. But we can help by providing safe places for solitary bees to lay their eggs, which they will be looking to do in the springtime.
Solitary bees are non-aggressive and won’t swarm, so you don’t have to worry about having a bee hotel in your yard. To attract bees to your bee hotel, it’s a good idea to put a shallow bowl of water near the bee hotel (you can put a few stones or some marbles in it for them to land on). A big threat to bees is thirst—so this is an important step.
If you’d like to learn more about bee hotels, or see some other pictures to get inspired, check out Edmonton & Area Land Trust’s website. They make cool gifts for gardeners, too!
Have you made a bee hotel before? I'd love to see pictures!