Garden And Yard Build The Planting Bench of your dreams

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The Eight Steps

1. First, lay your boards.

Lay out the peg back-board, and the pine leg-boards and peg panels that make up the sides—arranged as though the sides were hinged to the back so they open up and lie fiat like an old-fashioned folding vanity mirror. You will glue and staple the sides together and attach the cleats that hold shelves to back and sides.

Place the back-board on a really big work table or a floor you don't mind getting glue on. Face the shiny, finished surface up, and arrange it so the smooth, even factory-finished, 4-foot-long edge is locat ed at the top. At each side-butted tight against the long sides of the peg-board-lay the longest boards, the 8-inch-wide, 6-foot-long rear legs. Face the best side of each board down, as that's the side that will be open to view. Tap the boards so their top edges are 1/4-inch below the top edge of the peg-board back (giving you a strip of hardboard to fasten the topshelf board to).

Center a long straight-edge along the bottom of the rear legs. (An 8-foot-long 2 x 4 is easiest, so long as it is not warped.) This defines the floor line—where the bench legs will meet the floor.

Arrange the 3-inch-wide front-leg boards (with their bottom edges along the floor line) two feet to the outside of and parallel to the rear legs.

Put one of the two peg-board side-pan els on top of each pair of leg boards, rough side up and longer dimension up and down. Side edges of panels should be even with outer margins of legs, upper edges even with the upper ends of the legs, lower edges about 6"from the floor line and Y" lower than the bottom of the back panel.

2. Fasten side panels to legs, and install side-trim boards.
Scribe lines on the wood legs around the peg-board so you can remove the panels and replace them precisely.

Remove the peg-board panels, turn downside-up to expose the shiny side, and brush light coats of woodworkers' glue where they overlap leg boards. Brush glue on the wood beneath as well. Place glued surfaces together, lining adjoining edges and corners precisely, and fasten pegboard to wood with staples (or with flatheaded tacks)-two rows down each leg boardfasteners 3/4" or 1" in from each edge, every three inches.

Turn assembled sides over and measure across the peg-board between inner margins of legs. Cut four 4-inch-wide trim boards to fit snugly into the (about 13" ) spaces between inner margins of the leg boards at both top and bottom of both sides. Measure precisely and use a sharp saw blade to cut perfectly straight, dean, and square. The cut ends butt up to factory-straight edges, and wobbly saw cuts will leave small but telling gaps that betray amateurish work. Apply glue to peg and to insides of trim boards, align outer margins of trim boards with edges of peg panels, turn over and staple. Let dry overnight.

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