When the food supply runs out in autumn, hedgehogs start looking for a place to hibernate. You can provide valuable assistance so that the cute beneficial insects find what they are looking for quickly. We will be happy to explain to you how you can create the perfect winter quarters for hedgehogs using simple means.
Those who leave leaves and branches lying around in autumn offer hedgehogs a place to hide
From a pile of leaves to a mini hedgehog house, hedgehogs are not choosy
The most important criterion for the perfect winter quarters is reliable protection against cold, snow and rain. By piling the swept-up leaves into a pile in the fall, you're already making your prickly winter guests happy. Hobby gardeners with manual skills offer hedgehogs a touch of luxury with a protective house in the garden. The frugal spiny animal is perfectly satisfied with the following criteria:
- Stable, impermeable roof
- Entrance: 10 cm x 10 cm to a maximum of 15 cm x 15 cm
- Bedroom: Area dimensions 30 cm x 30 cm and larger
- Weatherproof floor on wire mesh underlay (14.99€) to protect against attacks from the earth
- Straw or wood shavings as nesting material, no sawdust or wood chips
If you take a disused, wooden wine box as the starting material, this trick reduces the amount of work. You build a hedgehog house for eternity out of bricks on a stone base plate.
tips
Are you not sure whether there is actually a hedgehog in your garden? Then his excrement gives a clear indication. Hedgehog droppings are as thick as a pencil, 2 to 5 cm long and taper to a point. Since the prickly animals defecate while running, their legacies are spread out over a wide area and do not form heaps. In contrast, martens leave an 8 to 10 cm long drop with a twisted tip.