How to Build a Simple Potting Bench

How to Build a Simple Potting Bench

by Michael J. McGroarty

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The potting bench that you are about to read about is not fancy, but very functional. It is also very easy to build and use. Except it doesn't have any legs! Don't panic, having a legless potting bench is actually a benefit, I'll get to that a little later. 

The potting bench described in this article is actually identical to the potting bench that we have been using for years in our backyard nursery, and it has served us well, potting up tens of thousands of plants.  I like it because it is large enough to pot up around ten small plants at a time, and it holds a significant amount of soil.

However, since I originally wrote this article, I designed and built a potting bench for home gardeners that you may like better.  There are lots of photos and step by step plans for building it on this page: http://www.freeplants.com/free-potting-bench-plans.htm

On the above page you will also find a photo of one of my other potting bench designs, an outhouse with a flip out potting bench!  It's unique, that's for sure.

Okay, back to my legless potting bench.

Here's a short list of what you'll need to build Mike's rugged, but functional potting bench.

Tools: A screwdriver, a small box wrench or crescent wrench, or if you have a 1/4" drive socket set that's even better. A tape measure, a small square, a drill, and a power saw.

Materials: One full sheet (4' by 8') of 3/4" treated plywood. Make sure it is treated so it will last a long time. Untreated plywood does not hold up well at all outdoors.

15 dohickeys (you know, those little metal angle brackets, or corner brackets used to connect two boards together at a right angle. These metal brackets are bent in a 90 degree angle and have two holes drilled in them).

30 bolts with nuts 1-¼" long, and the correct size to fit the angle brackets you buy.

60 flat washers that fit the bolts

This is the potting bench you are going to build.
"Mike's Legless Potting Bench"

If you use this article you can use the photos that accompany the article, as long as you leave the reference to http://www.freeplants.com on the photos.

Notice in the above photo that one end of the bench is resting on the potting soil pile, and the other on concrete blocks.  Not having legs is really an advantage because you can get the potting bench much closer to your potting soil pile.

Before you start, draw this out on paper so you know exactly what each piece of wood is supposed to look like before make any cuts. This way you won't make a mistake that will ruin your piece of plywood.

Lay the plywood on a flat surface, like your garage floor. From one end measure in 16" and draw a line across the sheet of plywood. With your saw, cut along this line. The piece that you are cutting off is 16" by 48".

Now draw a diagonal line across the smaller piece of plywood. (The one you just removed from the sheet.) Cut along this line. You should now have two triangular pieces that measure 48" on one side and 16" on one side.

These pieces should be in the shape of a right triangle. Now you are going to remove a small piece from the pointed end of the triangular pieces. To do this, measure 24" from the right angle, along the 48" side and make a mark. Using a small square draw a line from this mark across the pointed end of the plywood. This line should be at a right angle to the 48" side of the board. This line should only be about 4" long. Cut along this line, removing the small piece from the pointed end. Discard the small piece you cut off. The piece you have left should be 16" on one end, 24" on one side, and about 4" where you made the cut to remove the pointed end. 

The two smaller boards you have left should be identical. These are the sides for your potting bench. 

Now back to the larger piece of wood. This piece should now measure 80" by 48". From the long side measure over 16" and draw a line from one end to the other. Cut along this line. The piece you are removing should be 16" by 80", leaving a piece 32" by 80". 

These two pieces will serve as the bottom and the back of your potting bench. Take the back piece and stand it on edge, on top of the piece that will serve as the bottom of the bench to get an idea of how your potting bench is going to fit together. Make five marks where you will mount the angle brackets that will hold these two pieces together. Just space the five brackets along the two boards, making sure not to put any too close to the end so they don't interfere when you install the two end pieces. Just keep the brackets about 1-½" from each end. 

Note: Once you have the brackets installed and the bolts all tight you might want to cut off the ends of the bolts and file them smooth if they are sticking out so far as to be a hazard when you are handling the potting bench. 

Once you have all five brackets installed and the back of the potting bench mounted to the bottom, you can then install the two side pieces. With the two side pieces installed you are now the proud owner of a legless potting bench. You can install legs if you'd like to, but I like mine without legs because I can get it much closer to my pile of potting soil. 

What I do is rest one end of the bench right on the pile of potting soil, and then support the other end with a saw horse, concrete blocks, or milk crates. By placing one end right on the soil pile, it is very easy to shovel the soil onto the bench. Not having legs also makes the bench easier to store and move around. 

When I want to use it as a table for making cuttings, I just put a saw horse under each end. 

There you have it. Mike's famous legless potting bench. It ain't pretty, but it's very functional. 

Michael J. McGroarty is the author of this article.  Visit his most interesting website, http://www.freeplants.com and sign up for his excellent gardening newsletter.  Article provided by  http://gardening-articles.com.  If you use this article the above two links must be active.

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Composting For Successful Gardening

How to use composting to have a successful garden? Composting is absolutely essential if we are to achieve an abundant harvest.

For any successful garden, composting is an essential element for the soil improvement.


Especially when the dirt is lacking nutrients, and the soil in your garden is poor. Any kind of dirt can be improved. Be it loamy, sandy, or clay. This is done by adding amendments, mainly composted organic matter. The darker the dirt in your garden, the better success for an abundant and healthy crop. When the garden soil is fertile, the plants are growing more robust and it is easier for them to fight and builds resistance to different diseases.

Every serious gardener should consider composting, to amend and help the garden plot become nutrient again for the next season harvest. Once the nutrients are depleted, which it happens naturally, they must be replaced perpetually. Every year if possible.

If you don't have the time or the means to make a fast or active compost, you can easily go for a passive composting. While this might be a slower process, nevertheless it will do the job. It can absolutely be implemented with less care and no cost.

Even in a kind of neglected pile of compost with organic waste, the organic material will decompose even if it does it slowly. But it can be done without any significant effort.

The compost pile can consist of leaves, and lots of them. About two thirds leaves and one third nitrogen material will assure a good and consistent organic matter. The leaves will provide the carbon necessary for decomposing. The nitrogen can be obtained by adding cow manure, chicken manure, fresh grass clippings, and blood mill.

When you have a garden, it just doesn't make sense to burn the leaves! It would be a waste of a very important source of organic matter that can make a world of difference in the improving of your garden soil.

Just rake the falling leaves and put them in a pile out of the way, in a corner and just turn them and sprinkle with water when it is not raining. The leaves are a very good and important source of carbon. The microbes, those hard working little creature, will do the job. They live on the decaying material and that's why it is important to turn the compost pile to allow the oxygen and the newly added leaves in contact with the invisible microbes that are working day and night. And they are working for free. You don't even have to pay them! He, he, he!

So all these elements must be considered when composting for a better gardening: the composition of the material by combining the right proportion as described above. Moisture (by sprinkling water), aeration by turning it now and then with a pitch fork. Mother nature will take care of the rest. Some material will decompose faster, others slower. But they will decay.

Once the proper conditions have been created, the micro organisms will get in action, as well as the earth worms. They will multiply and as you apply the compost in the garden, the worms will aerate the soil to allow the oxygen where it is needed the most.

Once the compost is decayed enough, spread it on the top of the dirt in your garden plot and till it in the ground to blend in. This way it will decay even more, and make the soil rich and nutrient with all that good organic material. Gradually will build up the humus, that nice rich, dark looking color of the soil.

This is the cheapest and more economical way of composting. It would cost you hardly anything. By burning the leaves, you are burning your hard earned money. So why not put them to a useful purpose and save a bundle. Not withstanding the benefits of a successful gardening. To produce the nice, fresh, full of vitamins and minerals fruits and vegetables, with vivid full of life colors for your healthy living.

Gardening is wonderful. If you are not gardening yet, you are missing out on a lot of amazing things, and on the satisfaction of having your own quiet little place of retreat, from this noisy and crazy world. You will soon discover the enjoyment of gardening, and how beneficial it is for you.

Let's get our hands dirty. It is good for you.

Mike Borlovan

Gardening With Raised Beds The Easy Way

Easy gardening with raised beds, is a simple solution and much easier to manage.


To have a good variety of fresh vegetables and herbs to spice up your dishes and salads, the "raised beds" is the way to go. Just a few pieces of boards, a few nails, and you can have your rectangular frames done in no time. There might be some old boards laying around your property, that can be brought to good use, to make them useful again, thus keeping your cost very low.

So, the raised beds are easy to build and they should not be expensive, either.

Choose a good sunny spot close to your house to make it more accessible and easier to water. Hook your hose to a spigot and just water when it's not raining. And of course, closer to your kitchen for easy access for harvesting whenever you need to.

An ideal width of the beds should not be wider then 4 feet, for easy reach from both sides of the bed, and as long as you like. It depends on how much space you have, and how many kinds of vegetables you want to grow.

You can use 2 x 6 x 8, or 10 or 12, or if you have some 2 by 4 laying around unused, put 3 layers of frames on top of each other, to make it higher, to give the plants more room to spread the roots in the ground.

Nail the boards at the corners and you've got your frames for your raised beds. Set them in your selected spot, and lay some cardboard on the bottom, to keep any weeds from coming up through the soil. That is necessary if you lay the frames on top of the sod, and if you don't want to remove it. It's easier that way, and less work.

Now you are ready to put some top soil in your beds, or if you do not have access to some top soil there is another solution that I use: ground pine bark. This works real good and it's easier to work with, because it is lighter, and more porous, allowing the water to drain and the air to get to the roots. I'm not talking about 'air pockets', just some air to the roots as it happens naturally.

At this point it's a good idea to add some well composted cow manure and mix it into the soil. The vegetables love rich nutritious dirt. Now level the soil with a rake, and you are ready to get your hands dirty.

Choose the vegetables you like the most, and have them ready when you want to start planting. Once you have your list of the veggies you want to grow, shop for your seeds. A few examples of vegetable seeds would be: tomatoes, bell peppers, banana peppers, hot peppers, cucumbers, radish, lettuce, spinach, broccoli, squash, snap beans, cabbage, carrots, cauliflower, parsnip, etc. The list could be endless, but since your space is probably limited, you choose what you like best.

Build as many beds as you want. I would dedicate one of the beds, for the herbs, like: parsley, dill, basil, fennel, cilantro, arugula, chives, thyme, tarragon, rosemary, peppermint, oregano, sage, etc.

If you have the space, think about a bed for the strawberries. Rich in vitamins and minerals, and excellent to eat fresh or to make jams.

Once you have the selected seeds, you can plant them indoors, in small peat-pots, like jiffy pots, and when the danger of a late frost is gone, you plant them in your raised beds. If you don't want to start the plants by seeds, purchase the starter plants from your local Garden Center, and plant them directly in your vegetable beds. For the herbs, I would rather start them myself from seeds in some 3 to 4 inch plastic pots, and then plant them in the beds. It's much cheaper like that. Soon I will have a special article dedicated to growing herbs successfully in small containers.
Here are some raised beds made of lumber that was laying around, and I've put them to use.

As you can see, they don't really take too much room, and you can plant quite a few vegetables in a small bed like that. In the bed on the left you can see as I've nailed two thin 2x2's in the frame, and tied a wire mesh for the cucumbers to climb on, thus saving a lot of space. It worked out pretty good. In front of the cucumbers, I've planted a second crop of tomatoes, after an initial crop of snap beans was over. On the right bed I have some Black Krim Tomatoes. They have an excellent flavor, seeds originated from Russia. Very productive!

As you can see it's simple and practical. The beds are placed close to the house for easy access and easy watering. Once you planted the raised beds, there is not much ells to do, other then enjoy the fruits of your "easy labour", and just keep an eye now and then for any weeds that might pop up in your little garden. Pluck them out and toss them in your compost pile, where you can slowly but surely accumulate some composted matter for the next season. Leaves work wonders! Don't burn them, but rather gather the leaves and put them in a pile for future use.

Here is another view of the modest but useful raised beds.

It's so easy, and I have a lot of fun! Now I can enjoy the freshest vegetables possible with a low cost and plenty convenience. So do you! Why not eat healthy and fresh, besides the fact that you can watch every faze of the growing process, of your little garden paradise.

The vegetables that travel long distance from imports or even domestic, can't even come close to the freshness of what you can pluck from your garden whenever you please. And they cost you very little compared to what you are paying at your supermarket, or the produce stand. I would not trade this for anything. What is more beautiful then relax in the tranquility of your home, gardening for better living.

Enjoy the chirping of the birds, and the butterflies dancing in the sun. As a bonus you get the free exercise, that is good for your body, your soul, and your mind.

See how easy it is to garden with raised beds? For more gardening Articles, please visit my other blog.

If you like what you read in this article, please leave a comment and follow me on this blog. I will publish new and useful articles that I think it would help you make the right decision in your gardening endeavours.

I sure appreciate you taking the time to visit my blog, and until next time, happy gardening, and get your hands dirty, in your garden, of course.

Grand-pa Mike

How To Plant A Vegetable Garden

How To Plant A Vegetable Garden

If you think about having your own vegetable garden where you can pluck them out with your own hand, fresh, ripe, juicy, and full of vitamins and minerals, there is nothing really to compare or even come close to it. The vegetables will taste better and they are much more nutritious than the produce that is grown and shipped and travels long distance.

And many times they are picked green, and they are forced riped in the trucks on the way to some warehouses, before they get to the store shelf. Now, how does that compare with the fruits and vegetables that you can grow in your own little paradise?

For convenience, you probably used to go to the supermarket to buy your fruits and vegetables, but honestly, they just cannot compare with what you can grow and eat raw or cooked from your own garden.

If you never had the experience to create your garden yet, and all you have eaten was the produce from your local supermarket, or from the roadside fruit stand, than you are missing out and you owe it to yourself, to think very seriously to start your garden, if you really want to eat fresh and healthy. It is not really that hard, and it sure is not complicated at all. And once you have it, you'll be glad you did.

Just think of the benefits to be outdoors, in nature, and work in the tranquility of your little paradise. Not withstanding the free exercise you are getting in the process. That's good for your body, mind, and soul.

And you want to do it right. So it is a pretty good idea to make a little plan, and stick to it.
First, choose a good sunny spot, where you don't get too much shade or no shade at all, if possible, and the plot should be free of rocks or debris. But it should be close enough to the house to be able to water with a hose hooked to a spigot, when you need to water if and when it's not raining.

Preparation of the soil:

Preparation of the soil is very important, and your success will very much depend on how you prepare the site. If the soil is clay or sandy and lacks nutrients, it must be amended and enriched with composted matter, like cow manure, organic fertilizer and minerals if needed. To make it even cheaper for next season, collect the leaves and other vegetation, kitchen leftovers, and make your own compost. The humus that the plants strive on. The soil will need nutrients to replace those used and depleted by the vegetables as they feed from the soil.

Now think of what vegetables would you like to grow, something you enjoy eating the most. So, buy the seeds for the vegetables you choose, and go from there. It could be an endless list, but just a few examples would be; tomatoes, bell peppers, hot peppers, squash, radish, carrots, spinach, cucumbers, cabbage, lettuce, onions (sets). Maybe a few herbs to spice up your cooking with, like, dill, parsley, oregano, basil, fennel, arugula, rosemary, cilantro, etc. It all depends on how much space you have, and how large a garden you want to have. Herb plants don't take too much room, and they are fun to grow. Just think of that nice aroma they so freely give, in exchange of just a little LTC. Loving Tender Care.

To have a good and early start with your garden, start your seeds indoors, and plant the transplants after the danger of late frost is past. It depends on where you live. One of the best methods would be to start the seeds in little peat pots, like the Jiffy-pots, so that when you plant the little plants outside you plant them with the Jiffy pot, thus not disturbing the tender roots of the transplants. If you prefer, you can plant the seeds directly in rows, according to the instructions on the seed packets.

Plant the plants according to their size, and group them together. The low growing ones, should be separate from the tall growing ones, as to not block the sun light from reaching evenly on all the plants.
Water well and keep the soil moist. Don't let the soil dry completely out between watering, nor keep it too soggy either.

Once they started to grow, you can water them good, and then leave them alone and give them a chance to drink and feed. Water again before the soil dries out completely.

Now sit and relax on a bench, somewhere in the shade, and watch how the little seeds sprout out of the soil. It is very rewarding to see, as the hard part of gardening is pretty much over, except that now and then watch for them pesky weeds to pluck them out, and don't let them invade your little paradise. Wait patiently for the time when you take out of your garden, with your own hand, and enjoy those healthy, juicy vegetables. It is simply wonderful.

A lot more information is coming periodically, through related Gardening Articles. So please, leave a comment and help me improve the quality of service I'm providing to you, my fellow gardeners, freely. Your following me on this blog, as well as linking to it, is highly appreciated.

This Article was written by Mike Borlovan

Garden Like A Pro with modest means

Gardening like a professional with modest means.
You don't really have to be a professional gardener to grow quality, vibrant, healthy and full of life vegetables. You need a desire to learn, to experiment, and apply in practice what you've learned.

Mather nature is so rich, and so freely giving, that we could never exhaust her of the never ending resources she has. The only thing we need to learn is how to receive and take from her, as long as we do not try to destroy her.

And we need to give some of it back, by composting the leftovers, and help the soil to get fertile again, through natural means.

Sometimes the plot we intend to grow our vegetables in, is depleted of the best nutrients it used to offer. The first impulse would be to apply some chemically based fertilizer, but that's obviously not the best solution.

The land is so over fertilized in the lands where the produce is grown, and we purchase it from the supermarket shelf, they are hardly safe to eat anymore. You don't know what kind and how much fertilizer and pesticides was used to increase their bottom line for their productivity!

So what are we going to do? We have to eat fruits and vegetables, we've got to feed our families. But thank God there is an alternative to it: start your own Garden and grow your own fruits and vegetables, if you don't have one already. That's the smart thing to do. Especially today, when most of our produce is coming from imports, and we don't have a clue how were they grown!

We don't need to poison our bodies with chemical fertilizers and pesticides, that we don't even have any idea how much was there applied. We don't know how was the produce handled.

In my humble opinion, the best way to make the soil fertile is through natural means. Let's think of the forest, where the trees have grown and survived for hundreds of years. They even survived fires, and revived again stronger then before. Why?

Because of it's ability to replenish the nutrients by its natural means, without the intervention of the humans. The trees are dropping the dead limbs, and the leaves that decompose, and turns back into the soil, with the help of rain, wind, sun, heat, and our little invisible friends, the micro organisms that feed on them, and thus turn the decaying leaves into humus. That's exactly what the plants need to continue the cycle of life. Humus.

And that's exactly what we should do for the soil in our own garden. Collect the leaves from one year to another, have a pile in a corner of the garden, and let it decay. Just turn it now and then with a pitch fork, and you'll have the best natural fertilizer possible. For Free!

A lot of people are burning the leaves. Well, if they don't have a garden it's OK, I guess. But if they do have a garden, and they burn the leaves, and then they go to the supply store to buy that expensive chemical fertilizer, in my opinion that is a mistake. But, hey, who knows, maybe they have money to burn!

As for you folks, who are passionate about gardening and save the leaves, that's like money in your pocket, as well as prime quality fruits and vegetables, much safer to eat, than a lot of other people who maybe do not care.

If you have also access to some cow manure, that's perfect. But the leaves are the cheapest and smart way to make your own compost.

Now there are a lot of ways to make your own compost, of course, food leftovers, sea grass, seaweeds, ground oyster shells, peanut hulls, grass clippings, etc, etc, etc. I don't doubt that. But what I'm saying is that the leaves are the cheapest and the most readily available for almost anyone.

Spread your compost on top of the soil, till it in and reap the benefits of an abundant crop of fresh, vibrant, healthy, and happy fruits and vegetables of your own garden.

Create your own paradise and live smart and well.

Until next time,

Happy Gardening!