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While you can grow plants with absolutely no infrastructure, you can improve your output by building some custom bits of kit. Millie’s going to make a portable potting bench from a clapped-out bbq, the sort of thing you can easily find on hard rubbish.
How to Turn a BBQ into a Bench!
While the BBQ itself has rusted out, the timber trolley is still very solid. This BBQ bench it is made from Merbau, also commonly sold as Kwila. For decades, this durable, tropical hardwood species has been the cheap outdoor timber of choice, but that it is because it has been unsustainably logged. Millie would still never choose to use it new and never lets old merbau get thrown away.
1. The first thing step is to remove the old BBQ. Brace the trolley with a clamp and piece of timber aft out and undo the bolts. The BBQ will lift out and will go to the steel pile at the tip. Hang onto the bolts for re-use.
2. Next, fit some permanent bracing to stabilise the bench. These will be the side rails and will be fixed at the depth for the new timber top.
3. Then fit the top pieces. You can use pieces of ply or slats to match the ends.
4. To create a disposal chute to scrape excess potting mix or debris into, Millie has made a removeable piece of the bench.
5. While the timber and structure is relatively weatherproof, to make it easier to clean, Millie will repurpose the old, galvanised steel BBQ cover as a bench surface. Simply remove the top handle, flatten one edge and fix to the timber with a few screws.
6. To provide a backing to the bench, use a piece of external plywood with an angled side. This can be fixed to the bracing at the rear of the bench.
7. You can also add a small shelf to the backing board.
8. Millie has fitted a bench under the main space for storage and positioned a bucket/bin underneath to catch debris.
9. Give the whole thing a light sand and then seal with timber oil.
Materials to make your garden work better are everywhere, and by making it yourself you can customise everything. So, get looking, get making and get growing!
Filmed on Taungurung Country | Central Victoria
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