Shelving and Benches
Some say that growing plants and vegetables on raised benches is a waste of space, but if you are using the undersides of your shelves for storage or for keeping your seedlings you are, in fact, using your space wisely.

Posted Thursday, April 13, 2006

So what kinds of shelving are used in the greenhouse? Let’s start by defining what the differences are between shelving and benches. Shelving is often thought of as attachment to the interior of your greenhouse walls and benches are stacked and set in the greenhouse.

Using shelving in the greenhouse requires a little planning because you don’t want shadows over other shelves where your plants sit. You most likely will be using some type of clear, see through or wire shelving that allows in the sunlight. Using these types of shelving allow the lower shelves to get sunlight too.

If you are using wood or metal shelving you are going to have more shadows on the lower shelves. When you have shadows on the lower shelves you could be prolonging the growing stages of the plants beneath. If your shelves are packed full of plants, flowers and vegetables all the time, it really won’t matter what type of shelving you try or want to use because you will cause shadows on the lower shelving with full shelves on the top areas!

Any one can make shelving or benches out of wood. This is the least expensive to make but will need to be replaced every so many years due to moisture. You can prolong the life of the wood by sealing or varnishing it. If you are using wood for your shelving or benches you might consider drilling a few holes every few feet so that standing water will drain down through the benches and shelving. When you water the plants, you are often left with puddles of water on the wooden benches from the draining plants.