How to Build Your Own Potting Bench

By The Mother Earth News Editors
Published on June 1, 1995
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Build a useful potting bench for transplanting flowers, starting seeds and storing your gardening supplies.
Build a useful potting bench for transplanting flowers, starting seeds and storing your gardening supplies.
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(1.) Actual dimensions of a nominal1 x 4 x 6 board. (2.) A 4 x 8 pegboard (3.) divided into five panels and (4.) arranged so.
(1.) Actual dimensions of a nominal1 x 4 x 6 board. (2.) A 4 x 8 pegboard (3.) divided into five panels and (4.) arranged so.
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Detail of shelf supports.
Detail of shelf supports.
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Measuring initial leg cuts.
Measuring initial leg cuts.
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Rear bench top-support cleats.
Rear bench top-support cleats.
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Coating the leg board with glue prior to affixing it to side peg-board.
Coating the leg board with glue prior to affixing it to side peg-board.
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Trim the sides to your liking.
Trim the sides to your liking.
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Assembling front leg boards.
Assembling front leg boards.
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With the back and two sides laid out, placing shelf cleats.
With the back and two sides laid out, placing shelf cleats.
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Top shelf options.
Top shelf options.
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Left: Screwing in side shelf supports in side peg-board. Right: Fastening sides to back peg-board.
Left: Screwing in side shelf supports in side peg-board. Right: Fastening sides to back peg-board.
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There are a variety of ways to take advantage of the peg-board shelf space.
There are a variety of ways to take advantage of the peg-board shelf space.
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Affixing back peg-board to sides and top.
Affixing back peg-board to sides and top.
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With custom front trim in place, measuring cuts for benchtop boards.
With custom front trim in place, measuring cuts for benchtop boards.
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Laying benchtop boards in place.
Laying benchtop boards in place.

You can’t buy a decent potting/planting bench any more. The
garden-goods mail-order catalogs occasionally list
mini-benches stapled of thin mystery wood and dyed to
resemble California redwood. With some reinforcing they
might do for a space-short apartment dweller repotting a

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