How To Build A Butterfly House

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Butterfly's provide a lot of enjoyment and beauty to any garden. So much so that many people go out of their way to design and build their gardens in a way to make it more attractive in an attempt to lure into their gardens more butterflies. Many people have not only made their yards and gardens more butterfly friendly, but they have also started building a butterfly house or two to place in their garden.

Butterfly houses come in many shapes and sizes. They can be as elaborate as a person can imagine or as simple as a box, but many people usually try to go with something in between. I mean who wants to spend all that time and money creating the perfect butterfly garden only to place a simple butterfly house in the middle of it. 

Basically a butterfly house is in it's simplest form is a box with with long slits cut into it with bark inside. These butterfly houses create a safe place for them to rest while they are in your garden or a great place for them to stay during those long winter months.

So if you are ready to learn how to build a butterfly house using just simple tools and products that can be purchased at the local home improvement store then lets go!

There is nothing difficult when it comes to learning how to build a butterfly house for your garden. This guide is for just a simple basic house. How elaborate or fancy that you make yours is up to you, but this guide will get you started with the basics of building a butterfly house.

• The first thing that you need to do is create a simple wooden box. Most people prefer rectangles lets say 8 inches wide by 12 inches tall. Cut all the pieces for your box out of 1 inch thick wood that you can purchase at you local lumber yard. It doesn't really matter what wood that you purchase because more than likely you will paint the butterfly house when it is all finished.
• After you have cut all the pieces to create your box, you will then need to assemble it using quality wood glue and small finish nails to hold it all together. **Note: Do Not Assemble the top of the butterfly yet**
• Now that you have your basic box assembled and wood glue has dried it is now time to cut some slots into the front of the box. These slots should be about 1/2 inch wide and 3 to 4 inches long. I usually place 4 or 5 slots in the front of a typical butterfly house. These slots allow the butterflies to enter and exit the butterfly house while keeping out most large predators.
• Now that your box is built and the slots are cut into it, it is now time to place a nice piece of tree bark into the house. The tree bark provides a comfortable place for the butterflies to perch on while they are inside of the house.
• Next install the lid. I would use small screws instead of glue and nails to attach the lid. This way you can take the lid on and off to look inside or to replace the bark. Another great way to attach the lid is by using a small hinge, this way you can periodically take a quick peek at your garden guests.
• Finally before you place your new butterfly house out into your garden or yard you should paint it with a good non toxic paint. This will protect the wood from the weather and elements and give you a more finished looking product.

Well that is the basics of How to build a butterfly house you can make your own as simple or as fancy as you want!