Solitary Bee Hotel

'There are more than 2000 species of solitary bee in Britain. They are so named because unlike honeybees and bumblebees, they do not live in colonies. The first solitary bees to appear in the garden, as early as March each year, are the miner bees (Andrena). Similar to honeybees in appearance, they lack pollen baskets on their hind tibiae. These hairy bees make nests in the ground, usually in sandy soil and along paths. The female will dig the best, stock it with nectar and pollen and then seal it, leaving the young to fend for themselves. Also to be seen later on in the season are the leaf-cutter bees such as the Megachile species, which cut neat circles out of role leaves and petals to build nests in dead plant stems or sometimes in stacks of old flowerpots. these bees resemble honeybees but can be distinguishes by the bright orange pollen brushes under their abdomens. All solitary bees are excellent pollinators and should be encourage into your garden.' Taken from RES

So bearing all of that interesting info in mind, Dad and I worked on a little project to make a little 'Bee Hotel' to encourage solitary bees to nest. It is estimated that a third of all food consumed by humans (1 in every 3 mouthfuls) is a result of bee pollination.

I've tried to break it down into little stages if you would ever consider making one yourself.

Thank you Peter for kindly cutting all our wood :)