I have room for a grow light and a heat mat on one end of mine which is useful for starting seeds. The longer the better for a bench, the better IMO. I have a shelf underneath for pots, spray bottles, fungicides and insecticidal sprays, and other misc stuff that keeps the top clear. On top I keep a basket or two handy with a spare set of pruners, garden gloves, scissors and other things handy for using and I don’t have to make a trip here and there to the garage storage for my garden things.

Since you have no water source nearby I would ensure you have room to store a watering can and a couple of buckets. My water source is just outside my area.

Outside. TY , how do you keep your small garden tools, gloves dry, but still easy to grab. I'm in PA. We don't lack rain and then there is the winter.

Something to think about is what the bench will be sitting on unless there is a platform for it. I would still keep my gloves inside because in our humidity they can become moldy if put away in an enclosed area especially if damp.

Metal trash cans for things like potting mix. Reason metal rather than plastic is that we had a rash of fires several years ago caused by damp potting mix heating up and catching on fire. Perhaps several sizes if you mix your own.

I wish that mine had a cut out for a large Rubbermaid type tub that could hold potting soil. One that would just sit inside the cut out for my convenience when I am potting up plants. I could also use it to hold things while I watered them for the first time. It would keep the water from running through to the shelf underneath.

I never heard of fires from damp potting soil. Wow Metal it is.

I was thinking of a solid top to keep the mess doesn't drop below.

I have a long shallow cast iron enamel sink (actually an antique shower base) that I love. I can plug the drain and pour in water ( I connect to a hose for water) to soak potted plants. Obviously you cant get one of those but previously I had a bench with an old kitchen sink built in for the same purpose. A back with a grid so you can hang stuff up on hooks and a roof over the whole thing if you can finagle that. My present one is built onto the end of a shed so we just extended the roof.

My potting bench is in standup space under our house, not outside. If I had one outside, it would be totally different.

I was perusing the internet and I am wanting something like this. I don't want the doors though, just shelves. The doors would be an invite for hornet and mice nests. And I would want a shelf also on the back. I was thinking of maybe putting a gutter on the potting bench roof to collect water into a barrel. My water source is on the other side of the house and I ain't getting any younger. We have some pieces of slate hanging around and were thinking of using some of it for the roof and bench top.

maifleur01 We will probably sit it on patio stones.

There was one over on the garden junk forum that someone had made. It was a very nice garden bench. I will see if I can find a picture. I no longer have one myself.

If anyone is interested in threads about potting benches from the garden junk forum here's a link.

https://www.houzz.com/discussions/garden-junk/query/Potting-bench/nqrw

function while it depends on how your house was built you may find having a second faucet added to the other side of the house money well spent. We did it several years ago with freeze proof faucets. Just do not do what I did and forget to turn it on and off several times during the year. The one in the front is now frozen and needs stronger muscles than mine to open it.

Here's an article and pictures of Kirk's beautiful potting bench.

http://www.fleamarketgardening.org/2013/02/03/how-to-build-a-vintage-style-potting-bench/

Maifleur01, we have public water in the house, but the hose on the outside is still using the old well for water. I can water to my hearts content. Free water! He could run a line around the back to the shed, but he said once the pump goes for the well he isn't replacing it since the well is 160 ft deep. I know a dime to a dollar if he would lay the line the pump would die.

Shade! I have one I built out of pressure treated 2x4s and the top nis made from 2x10 stair treads I replaced. I have a small one made from a 2x3 outdoor table my neighbor gave me. I put wheels on so I can wheel it around where I need it. Works well!

Thank you plays inthedirt, I got a rain barrel last fall. We are waiting for the weather to cooperate to build the potting bench. If it ever stops raining.

Except for a few tweaks and some bins for dirt the potting bench is built. A functioning rain barrel is hubby's next project. We decided to put on doors after all. It's nice to have a hubby that is a jack of most trades.

It's good you have a soft surface to stand on rather than pavers or gravel.

I didn't know what I want to put there. I had some mulch left over so I put it there for now. The problem is the way the rain water drains some of it is washing away. I'll see what happens this year, but might have to do pavers next year. Definitely not gravel.

I was going to suggest a rain barrel also. If you put a gutter on the overhang it could feed into the rain barrel and if the rain barrel has a spigot, you are all set.

My "potting bench" is an old cafe table and chairs that aren't used anymore. It's a good height for potting but not good for anything else. No storage or anything useful. Just a space to put dirt into pots.

We have the rain barrel. My husband is still working on it to make it functional, with a spigot. I don't know if with the way the roof is built on the shed and potting bench if we can collect the rain water. He is still trying to figure it out. If not I can run the hose from the well and fill it up when needed. I have to anyway once in a while to fill up the fountain nearby.

My rain barrel has a hand pump coming out of the top...I can easily fill my watering cans with it...perfect idea to get a down spout off your roof to fill it.

Arcy, it would be perfect to collect the rain water off the roof, but it is a shed roof. It has no fascia to attach a gutter to.