Join us in our efforts to give back to nature and help protect our epic little pollinators by providing a home for solitary bees. Solitary bees pollinate many of our food crops including many of the botanicals we use to create our delicious gins! Designed as part of our award winning sustainability campaign, our Conservation and Sustainability Manager, Jonny, designed these bee hotels alongside Wildlife World as an interactive observation hotel so you can enjoy the fruits of your labour by watching these charismatic bees nesting and their brood developing all year round.
Installation and uptake:
Position 1-3 m above the ground
Make sure the bee hotel is sheltered from the wind and placed in a sunny spot
Check that the bee hotel is secure and will not rock
Ensure forage such as flowers and trees are available locally (i.e near gardens, parks, woodland)
Masonry bees will take up residence in the hotels between April-May whilst Leafcutter bees will be June-July. If your bee hotel is occupied, you can bring it into a shed/garage over winter to protect the developing bees from the harshest of weather and predators such as woodpeckers. Put your hotel back into its usual position in early spring (March) and the bees will emerge and your hotel will be re-colonised the following year.
Did you know – solitary bees do not sting like wasps or honeybees, solitary bees are not aggressive and their sting is small and very week and unlikely to penetrate human skin making it ideal for gardens and allotments.
Installation and uptake:
Position 1-3 m above the ground
Make sure the bee hotel is sheltered from the wind and placed in a sunny spot
Check that the bee hotel is secure and will not rock
Ensure forage such as flowers and trees are available locally (i.e near gardens, parks, woodland)
Masonry bees will take up residence in the hotels between April-May whilst Leafcutter bees will be June-July. If your bee hotel is occupied, you can bring it into a shed/garage over winter to protect the developing bees from the harshest of weather and predators such as woodpeckers. Put your hotel back into its usual position in early spring (March) and the bees will emerge and your hotel will be re-colonised the following year.
Did you know – solitary bees do not sting like wasps or honeybees, solitary bees are not aggressive and their sting is small and very week and unlikely to penetrate human skin making it ideal for gardens and allotments.
