Ipswich in Spring 2020

HOW TO CHECK YOUR FROGS INTO A HOTEL

Allison Begnell has built her own frog hotel to keep the frogs in her garden safe. What is a frog hotel you may ask? It is a safe area for tree frogs searching for a cool, moist environment to live in. Allison Begnell decided to make her own frog hotel after her dog Milly, became a bit obsessed with their jumping green friends in the backyard. “Choose a spot where your frogs like to hide and sleep during the day and place your hotel as close to that location as you can,” Ms Begnell said. “Preferably a cool, shady, damp spot out of direct sunlight. “Then if you get the pipes pre-cut, it doesn’t take long to construct. “Most of the materials I used were recycled materials except the few smaller PVC pipes that cost me $35 to purchase at our local water pump store.” Ms Begnell then basically drilled some holes into the piping for drainage,

put a layer of rocks on the bottom and placed the PVC pipes into a waterproof container. She then added water to the base container. “The frogs like the large PVC pipe the best with the elbow on the end, probably because it’s darker inside,” she said. “I put a few smaller pipes in the large pipe and they tend to like sitting in the gaps between the pipes rather than inside the small ones.” Ms Begnell also shines some solar powered lights over her frog hotel to attract bugs, as a kind of room service. “I’ve added plants around it and in it and I’ve found the frogs that can’t climb into the hotel still can hide in the plants and be close to the water.” The pipes should be a minimum of 60cm high so the toads can’t get in. Subscribe free to Ipswich First news alerts at Ipswichfirst.com.au/subscribe/

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