Homemade Ladybug House

I've wanted to make a ladybug house for months but I just haven't done it yet. Ladybugs kill aphids and all kinds of other little bugs and worms in your garden and it's a very organic way to control pests. Today I got in Pinterest and made myself a Ladybug House board. Then I pinned a bunch of ladybug houses. They're so cute and I really want one but I keep forgetting to get some kind of tube at the store to make one. After looking at those houses, I realize you can use anything to make a ladybug house. So here's what I did.

 First, I got a red valentines bucket I bought last year that has a lid with a slot in it. Then I wrapped Sisal twine around the handle to make it more stable while hanging in the tree. I cut four 2 1/2 foot long pieces of twine and tied to the middle of the handle so I could tie it to the tree.
I went outside with my pruning sheers and cut a bunch of wood of different widths into 4 inch long pieces. I also cut bamboo, cane, and strips of bark from my dead mimosa tree in 4 inch long pieces. I stood all the pieces of cut wood, cane, and bamboo up in the bucket. Then I shoved in the pieces of bark in between the wood/bamboo/cane to make more places for the ladybugs to go.

I put the lid on the bucket and hung it in the tree by my herbs. I quickly realized a potential problem. The back of the bucket was lower than the front of the bucket and when it rained it would fill up with water. So I untied the bucket and got a screw driver and popped a few holes in the bottom side of the bucket and I also put a hole in the bottom of the bucket so the water could drain out after it rains.

Then I hung it back in the tree. Perfect. It's so cute. Then I had one more thing to do to make my ladybug house complete. Hunt for ladybugs to put in the house to hopefully draw in more ladybugs. I searched for a long time and couldn't find a ladybug. I can't believe I can't find one. When I don't need a ladybug, they land on me. When I neeeeeed one, I can't find one anywhere. Oh well, I'll keep looking, and as soon as I find one, in the house it goes.

While I was tying the ladybug house to the Crape Myrtle, a big butterfly landed on my Beebalm flower so I took that grand opportunity to take a picture of him. It was pretty windy so this was the best pic I could get before it flew away.