Cardboard box Kelli McClintock via Unsplash
Speaking to HuffPost UK, the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) previously advised whacking an old washing-up bowl into your garden.
When placed in a lined hole with useful rocks on its sides, RSPB explained, it can create a “mini pond”. This is useful for a wide range of wildlife, from hedgehogs to house martins to frogs.
And now, gardening expert and Ronseal’s senior brand manager, Jimmy Englezo, has echoed Hedgehog Welfare’s advice.
You can make a cosy home for the soon-to-hibernate ’hogs out of a cardboard box, they both say.
Why should I put out a hedgehog box?
Hedgehogs are at an increased risk of death following our hot, dry summer, Natural England said.
That’s not just because of the extreme weather itself. The dramatic temps have reduced the number of insects hedgehogs rely on for food, too.
One way to help them this autumn is to give them a safe place to hibernate. To do that, Engelzo said, “A plastic storage box, wooden crate, or sturdy cardboard box with a 13cm square entrance can be filled with dry leaves, straw, or shredded newspaper.
“Add insulation using logs or bricks and cover it with a waterproof sheet. Leave water and meaty cat food nearby – but never place food inside the shelter itself.”
This set-up should ideally be assembled in “late summer or early autumn” – or around about now – to give hedgehogs “enough time to find it and settle in before hibernation season begins”.
How can I make a cardboard box hedgehog house?
Hedgehog Welfare recommends taking a box that’s at least 30cm long, but no longer than 45cm.
It should be made of thick cardboard and ideally open on the top rather than the sides.
Cut a 13-cm hole “as near as possible to one of the bottom-side corners of the box” and line it with about eight to 10 sheets of newspaper.
Find dry leaves, buy hay, and/or cut strips of newspaper, too (a mix of all three on top of the existing sheets of newspaper is best for the hedgehog).
Fill your box two-thirds up with this mix without pressing it down too much, and cover it with a waterproof material, like a bin liner, which you can tape down.
Cut a hole in the liner where the door is so the hedgehog can get in and out and place the bonz under some brambles or a hedge to protect it from wind and rain.
Voila – you’ll have a hedgehog home.
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