It’s officially spring. The bees are out in full force and we all know they need as much help as they can get. I haven’t seen any yet but the butterflies won’t be far behind.
A few years ago I pounded a few pieces of electrical conduit into the ground in my front flower bed with the intention of turning them into either something for the birds or a Bee and Butterfly Waterer.
You could easily make this into a platform bird feeder by filling it with birdseed but I decided to go with pretty gems and water. The glass gems make it pretty but also serve a practical purpose.
They attract the bees & butterflies with their pretty colors and they give them somewhere to land so they don’t get stuck in the water and potentially drown. Like my ladybug vs bumble bee tic-tac-toe game this is an easy afternoon project that doesn’t require skill.
Bee and Butterfly Waterer Supplies:
? Electrical conduit, 1 inch, cut to size (desired height plus 12-16 inches) they’ll do this at the store
? Wooden dowel, fits easily but not loosely into pipe, 12 inches
? Outdoor rated glue
? Dinner plate, make sure it’s deep, a shallow plate won’t hold enough water (This is from the Pioneer Woman Collection at Walmart)
? Glass gems – Check the Dollar Tree
? Water
Instructions:
1 – Either pound your pipe into the ground or make someone do it for you (I like to use the “I’m pregnant” excuse but it’s not that hard). I pushed it in as far as it would go and then placed a piece of 2×4 over the post and hit it with a hammer until it was about a foot in the ground. Each spring I check to make sure they’re still secure.
2 – Glue the dowel to the bottom of the plate as close to center as you can get. Let the glue set according to the package directions.
3 – Stick the dowel into the pipe, add gems and water
4 – Be impressed
5 – Eat ice cream, you earned it
Depending on where your butterfly waterer is located you might need to add water every day or every few days, same with cleaning. Luckily it’s easy to pull up the plate, give the rocks and plate a quick cleaning (in straight water!) and put it all back together.
Obviously direct sun will lead to more algae and water loss but if you stick it under a tree you’ll be cleaning out leaves and tree residue.
After 2 years of use my glue crapped out. I’m going to try something new this summer and I’ll get back to you!
Other garden projects you will enjoy:
Monica says
That is gorgeous! I don’t have room for a regular size bird bath and this will fit perfectly. Love the gems – they add such a dash of color!
Jennifer B says
This is so beautiful and would look lovely in any garden! We have a lot of bees here and could use one of these!
Jennifer says
How cute and so simple! I love that it’s a pretty way to attract pretty butterflies!
Nicky says
This is a great idea. We have quite a few bees visiting our garden and yard this Spring. These will be a great addition to the yard.
Joy @ Joy Love Food says
This is so pretty, what a great idea, I will have to try it!
Ilka says
I had no idea that the glass gems attract the bees and butterflies, but it makes total sense. It’s a really beautiful bird feeder!
Censie says
This turned out perfect. I showed it to my daughter and she wants to make one for her garden. Hoping to do it this weekend!
Katerina says
So pretty and I love the blue color especially during summer!
Danielle says
This is beautiful! I’ll definitely have to give it a try this week!
KC the Kitchen Chopper says
Whenever I accomplish a task or sport event I get ice cream. I like your style!
Michelle Marine says
Great post! It’s so important to help the pollinators in any way we can.
Joanna @ Everyday says
This is so pretty! I know that my 10 year old daughter would love helping me with this project! She is always wanting to help God’s creatures and critters. š
Debra says
I couldnāt get the wooden dowel to stick to the plate. I used gorilla glueā¹ļø
Rose Tomlinson says
I use E600 Industrial glue for all things I planned to put outside. I think I made flowers from plates using this glue about 4 years ago and it’s still together.
Lorraine says
I am going to do this and just place the plate on a small table so I don’t have to use the dowel and conduit and glue. Simple. And then easy to clean.
Susan says
I want to try this, seems so lovely however I sometimes have young granbabies visit. Would it be safe to glue the stones in place so little hands canāt grab them? I was wondering if the glue might cause the water to be taintedš¤·āāļø Thanks
Alecia says
I wouldn’t glue them, you could probably use fish tank sale silicone adhesive without harming the butterflies but it would be very difficult to keep it clean. I keep mine in the middle of a clump of cone flowers, the kids can see it but they don’t go into the flowers and they can’t reach the stones.
Cathy says
Such a great idea. I would love to try but concerned about mosquito larva?
Alecia says
I ended up refilling almost daily, it’s a shallow plate and it doesn’t hold a lot of water. If you clean it out every few days or even just overfill it and let the excess run off to clear out any eggs you won’t have any issues
Larry Wachtel says
The very best glue to use is two part epoxy, available at any hardware or big box store. Once mixed and applied to the surfaces to be bonded, you won’t be able to separate them without breaking them.