Handmade by Earl Whitaker · Hocking Hills, Ohio
Alan's Hand-Built Blossom Warden Bee Hotel
Alan's Hand-Built Blossom Warden Bee Hotel
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Alan's Hand-Built Blossom Warden Bee Hotel
Hand-Built in a Converted Brick Stable in Worcestershire — Solid Cedar, Hand-Folded Copper Ridge
Alan Tysoe, 74, joiner, Pershore, Vale of Evesham. Forty-three years refining one thing: a nesting home Britain’s wild bees will actually move into. His right hand won’t do the fine work any more. This is the final run.
“Nobody poisoned those bees. I pointed the wall. A hundred and fifty years they’d lived in that mortar, and I filled every hole in a fortnight. I’ve spent every year since giving them their homes back.”
— Alan Tysoe, Pershore, Worcestershire
What Arrives
Six Things That Decide Whether the Brood Gets Out
“I’ve recorded solitary bees in the West Midlands for over twenty years, and the failed hotels I find all fail the same way: split bamboo in random sizes, tunnels barely ten centimetres deep, rough bores, treated softwood and an open back. A red mason bee wants a smooth tunnel of around eight millimetres and fifteen centimetres deep, in untreated timber, closed at the rear and kept dry. That is the whole specification. It isn’t complicated. It’s just rarely done.”
— Dr. Helen Ashby, volunteer solitary bee recorder
Suits
Why It Lasts
- Untreated solid cedar, 19 mm. Not plywood, not a laminate, not tanalised pine. The timber boatbuilders have trusted for centuries.
- Hand-folded copper at the ridge. The seam where rain gets in first is flashed in metal that won’t rust or crack.
- Hand-dressed tunnels. Every bore passes the straw test before it leaves the bench. A rough tunnel is a tunnel no bee uses twice.
- Sealed rear panel. Parasitic wasps can’t reach the brood from behind, which is where occupied hotels usually fail.
- Occupied since 2003. One of Alan’s hotels has been full every spring on the same packing-shed wall near Pershore for twenty-three years.
30-Day Satisfaction Guarantee
Put it up and see who moves in. If it isn’t right for any reason, send it back within 30 days for a full refund — no conditions, no questions, no fuss. Just email info@backroad-goods.com.
Details
| Material | Solid untreated Western red cedar, 19 mm on every face |
| Roof | Two solid cedar boards with hand-folded copper ridge flashing |
| Dimensions | Approx. 20 × 18 × 20 cm |
| Openings | 2.5 mm to 9.5 mm, graded; tunnels approx. 15 cm deep |
| Tunnel finish | Hand-dressed, straw-tested, no standing fibres |
| Rear panel | Sealed solid cedar, parasite-proof |
| Mounting | Flush-set heavy-gauge steel hook plus two feet — hang, fix flat or stand |
| Suits | Red mason bees, leafcutter bees, wool carder bee, yellow-faced and scissor bees |
| Siting | South or south-east, approx. 1.5 m up, morning sun |
| Care | Leave outside year-round. Don’t bring into a shed or greenhouse over winter. |
| Made in | Pershore, Worcestershire — by hand since 1983 |
| Availability | Final run from Alan’s workshop. No restock, no successor. |
Meet your maker: Earl Whitaker
34 years a shop teacher. Now he builds birdhouses the slow way — one at a time, signed by hand.
Read Earl's story →
The Back Road Guarantee
If anything ever fails on this birdhouse — a joint, a hinge, the roof — Earl repairs or replaces it for free. For life. No receipts, no forms, no fine print. That's the deal he made us, and it's the deal we make you.
Before You Order
When will my order ship?
The maker keeps a small number finished and ready. Orders ship straight from the workshop within 3 business days, and you'll get a tracking number the moment it's on its way. If a batch sells out, the page will say so honestly — and you can join the waitlist for the next one.
What if it arrives damaged or I don't love it?
You have 60 days to change your mind — send it back for a full refund, no questions asked. And if anything ever fails on it, the Back Road Guarantee covers repairs or replacement for life, handled directly with the maker.
Is every piece really made by one person?
Yes. Every piece is made start to finish by one maker — cut, finished, signed, and wrapped by hand. That's why batches are small and why yours will carry a hand-written number.
Will mine look exactly like the photos?
Almost — but not perfectly, and that's the point. Natural materials vary in grain and tone, so every piece is one of a kind. What never varies is the craftsmanship behind it.
Is it a good gift?
It's our most-gifted item. Every order arrives hand-wrapped in kraft paper with twine and a signed note from the maker — no receipt in the box, so it ships straight to the lucky person.