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Insect shelters

Friday 15 July 2022, by La graine

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How to accommodate insects. Natural shelters are preferable. We can however build some shelters if we cannot set up the natural shelters.

First of all, no, we won’t talk about bug hotels for those who know it.

If this one can have an educational interest, it is little used by the insects. This is due to several reasons, locations not always suitable, competing species...

We will focus here on what works, which is natural and multi-use (such as the advice discussed here).

Ladybugs

Ladybug shelters have quite negative reviews (correct me in the comments if this is not your case).
However, if you have read the advice here, piles of wood, a dry stone wall, cracks in a wall or under a pile of dead leaves will do fine for them. They can also be found in mosses or under bark.

Lacewings

There are shelters on which I have no return. In winter, winged adults find refuge in piles of wood, dead leaves and in uninhabited premises. [1]

Wild Bees

Some bees make their habitat in the ground. We will leave them some space and a bit of peace if we see them settling somewhere.
Some bees will also be able to lodge in drill woods. Thus, you can drill a log with holes of different sizes from 4 to 10 millimeters (5 to 10 cm deep) which you will place in the garden.
You can hang the log to a tree branch, or put it at the end of a stake.
Osmias, andrenes or anthidia (name for wild bees) will thank you!

You can also use hollow plants (bamboo, Japanese knotweed, etc.) to make hanging bundles.
This will attract “caulicolous” bees, from the Latin caulis (stem) and coler (to live) [2], which establish their nest inside the hollow stems of plants.

The “rubicolous” bees will prefer bundles with stems containing pith (or medulla) such as elderberry, bramble, rosebush...

Bundles can also attract other insect species.

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