WOODLAND WALK | WILDLIFE

Bug hotels are an amazing way to support the local wildlife and insects on the Hoar Cross Hall grounds. They thrive on living in natural materials such as rotted wood or leaves and the more we can do to make it a welcoming place to stay, the better.

The sort of guests that check into our Bug Hotel are a varied bunch. We find we’re getting pollinators such as ants, butterflies, moths and wasps. These types of bugs will pollinate vegetables and flowers and help us to grow thriving vegetation. It’s also lovely to see all the various butterflies softly flying around in the summer.

The Bug Hotel also attracts predators. The sorts of insects that will take care of other insects such as aphids or mites without the need for any pesticides on anything we grow. So, we’ll find ladybugs, lacewings and more checking in.

Then we have the decomposers. This type of bug will eat anything dead or rotting within our grounds. These include spiders, centipedes, and beetles who will easily take care of any rotting vegetation, a vital part to play in a healthy eco-system.

Felling trees is a natural part of managing our woodlands. When this becomes necessary, we use a variety of logs and stack them to create a welcoming place for wildlife. To help the biodiversity thrive, we’ll strategically place them around the grounds.

Added to this, all the wood chippings and bark we have left over from the process is used for mulching. This is great at helping to prevent evaporation of moisture from the soil and creating a happier environment for plants to grow.