"Respecting the environment and sustainability is one of the pillars of agronomy developed by INIA and the use of these facilities in a way to maintain the balance of insects in the area, control pests in a natural way and serve as a refuge for different species¨, affirms the transference researcher Patricio Abarca Reyes.

The continuous occupation of wild places for urbanization, the production of intensive crops and, above all, the excessive use of generalist pesticides in agriculture, is strongly interfering with the biological diversity of natural systems. Therefore, the sources of food (native flora), the shelter of many beneficial insects and, also, the elimination of natural enemies, be it predators or parasitoids, have been disappearing.

The agronomist Patricio Abarca Reyes from INIA Rayentué, has not only dedicated himself to making these little houses, as part of his free time activities, but has also become aware of the value of this type of shelters at a critical moment of the systems natural conditions and the loss of food sources by insects.

Next, the INIA professional describes how an insect hotel is made, where it should be located and how to favor floral bands with prolonged flowering, since these will attract beneficial insects and maintain a better balance in the garden.

To improve the reproduction and permanence of beneficial insects, insect hotels are manufactured and permanently implemented crops with attractive flowers that deliver pollen and / or nectar. Both conditions help to enrich the diversity of species and the biological balance in our cultivation or garden.

The insect hotel is an artificial room, which simulates a natural refuge for shelter and hibernation of the beneficial insects that we have in fields or gardens. It can go from a simple box, to structures of different sizes and shapes. Inside they contain divisions with various materials (mostly natural), which grant different conditions depending on the species. In addition, insect hotels are an ornamental part of the landscape and fulfill an illustrative pedagogical role, especially for children, who learn the biology of insects and some systems for protecting nature.

In general, the boxes or structures that shape the hotel are usually made of wood. The external part must protect from weather conditions such as wind and rain, the internal part must divide the hotel into different rooms to create different conditions according to the requirements of the species, creating dark spaces, holes, tunnels, slits, etc. For this, you can use a variety of materials (if possible natural), such as pine cones (“pineapples”), reeds, open seeds without seeds, wood with holes, pieces of wood, bark, shavings, bricks, stones , among others.

Hotels should be located in orchards or gardens, protected from the wind, rain and direct afternoon sun in summer. Normally in height, about 60 to 100 cm from the ground, although they can also be located at ground level for species that live on the ground surface, such as some beetles and crickets. The insect hotel by itself will not attract beneficial insects, it must be located near flora, whether wild or cultivated, this should be permanent during the year as much as possible. In addition, the hotel should be located near water sources and away from pesticide applications.

For beneficial insects to occupy the hotel, it is important to maintain a constant flowering in the garden or orchard. In agricultural crops, floral bands are planted with different species of alternating flowering during the year. These bands can have several objectives depending on the species, among them; attraction and food to beneficial organisms that help control pests; as a trap crop, where pest insects attack the floral band and not the crop; as a repellent, where the color or smell of the flowers serves to ward off unwanted insects.

We should favor floral bands with prolonged flowering, since these will attract beneficial insects and maintain a better balance in the garden. The most used short flowering species are; Chinese carnations, chamomiles, daisies, nasturtiums, pansies, yarrow, mugwort, dahlias, calendula, alyssum, tagetes, cosmos, among others. If we want a multi-year band (more extensive during the season), aromatic plants such as; rosemary, lavender, lemon balm, thyme, mints, pennyroyal, rue, oregano, among others.

Remember that, according to the crop we have, we must associate the species or species of flora bands that we wish to use, since some will serve as a “trap crop”, others as repellency and, also, as attractants for beneficial insects to improve the biological control of predators and parasitoids.