We made a bee house last week, and in that post I mentioned we would be making bee baths. Many of you were interested in the bee baths, so I thought I would share. Honestly, think bird bath, on a much smaller scale, and with rocks in it, so the bees, and other insects, have a place to land to grab a drink.
If you have a little one with a vast collection of rocks, as I do, this project comes together pretty quickly. We used a plant tray, filled it with rocks, and added some water. I have read that honey bees are attracted to the scent of lemongrass, so I am hoping the same is true for solitary bees, because we added a few drops of lemongrass essential oil, and then found the perfect spot in the garden for it. We put it in close proximity to the bee house, and Reece thought having it close to our toad shelter was a good idea too.
So there it sits, waiting to quench the thirst of the bees, and insects who frequent our gardens.
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What a lovely idea, fingers crossed you get to see it in action.
ReplyDeleteThanks Sally, we are hopeful :)
Deleteoh how lovely. it had never occurred to me that bees required one! an especially important piece of info if one lives somewhere without natural sources of water.
ReplyDeleteThanks Autumn, and yes, they need water just as much as we do :)
DeleteVery cool. :-) Lucky bees. We have plans for one in the fairy garden and again, around our garden beds. We are also looking forward to building our first bird bath this year. We have enjoyed making our yard more critter friendly over the years.
ReplyDeleteThanks. I hope the bees think so :) Bird baths are so much fun, we have one and watching the birds in it is hilarious, they way they splash around for their bath, shake their wings, and just hang out. So much fun!
DeleteThanks for sharing! This will be a nice project for tomorrow. Kids will love it!
ReplyDeleteAlways happy to share. Have fun!
DeleteI have a 'big guy' who still brings home rocks in his pocket and now I know what to do with them, thanks Kim,, I love this.
ReplyDeleteHehe, I have one of those too. If you were to total up the rocks that both Justin and Reece bring home I bet we could build another house :)
DeleteHave fun making your bee bath Tracey.
I'd never seen a bee bath before. What a nice idea! I have an old flowerpot under-plate that would work for this (right now it's sort of a chicken-chair; they sit on it when they're free-ranging but it can be washed and repurposed!). Thanks for sharing.
ReplyDeleteThanks, glad you like it. Have fun making one of your own :)
DeleteHow great! And that little shed (garden house? guest cottage?) is adorable.
ReplyDeleteThanks Andrea! That would be a little guest cottage. We don't have room in our home for guests, a one room schoolhouse just doesn't have a lot of room, so the cottage in the backyard is equipped with a futon and a wood stove. Perfect for a night or two.
DeleteWe made one yesterday too. Thanks for the inspiration.
ReplyDeleteYay!! So happy to hear that. You are most welcome my friend. xo
DeleteGreat idea!!
ReplyDeleteThanks Anke!
Deletewe made a bird bath the other day too. We also tried laying out fruit in a bowl of water for butterflies to land on but so far have only gotten squirrels :)
ReplyDeleteHow lovely! Bird baths are so much fun, and watching the birds is great entertainment. We love ours.
DeleteHehe, we tried that last summer, all we get were ants :) We do have painted ladies and swallowtails flying around these days so maybe we should try again....
How neat! What a cool idea. When a get to a place where I don't have to worry about neighborhood restrictions, I want to plant a bee garden...basically a garden of plants that attract and encourage bees.
ReplyDeleteThanks Melissa. He had fun putting it together. Yes, we have a bee and butterfly garden here, love it!
DeleteLove this idea! We made one as a bird bath, but it's become dangerous because of the neighbor's cat. We'll throw some rocks in it and put it near the garden instead! I love the idea of fruit too. (Sorry if this published twice, my computer is a bit buggy these days). :)
ReplyDeleteThanks Carlin. Hope you guys attract some bees to your garden :)
DeleteNo worries, it didn't :)
A bee bath. I love it!
ReplyDeleteThanks Jen!
DeleteOh neat! I was thinking of doing something similar with fruit for butterflies.. My husband would never let me do this. I'm deathly allergic to bees :(
ReplyDeleteYes, not a good idea to attract bees them :)
DeleteDo let me know if you attract butterflies with the fruit. We tried it last year and only attracted ants. We had a ton of butterflies in the yard, but none of them went to the fruit.
Brilliant!!! I like where you've place it...
ReplyDeleteThanks Erica!
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