Potting benches are gardening work stations that provide both work space and storage. Several shelves can help a gardener find room for storage and keeps tools and supplies organized. Some potting benches also include hooks and drawers. Others include features such as basins for mixing soil. In this case, the work area may have a tile which you can lift up, and you will find the inset basin beneath this cover. Potting benches are not simply functional. They often combine their work features with a design that pleases the eye.

Variety provides the key to planning an interesting garden. Shapes, colors, textures—they all can provide the variety you need. As you plan the variety you will incorporate into your garden, plants are not the only factor that you may want to consider. Potting benches can become an actual element of your garden theme.

First of all, you want a focal point for your garden. Make it easy on yourself and use one or several wood potting benches as the centerpiece. Instead of using the shelves for storage, use them as displays for your favorite potted plants. If you can't pick your favorites, rotate the pots occasionally.

Wood potting benches come in a variety of colors. If you like natural wood, white cedar lends a frosty look to the scene, while red cedar offers a warmer look. If you need a more precise hue, you can paint or stain the wood. You could also buy a piece that has already been painted.

Flowers aren't the only way to achieve variety in color. Foliage and vegetables can contribute to your color scheme. Look for leafy plants with unusual coloring, such as red or purple leaves. Choose vegetables like tomatoes, peppers, carrots, beets, okra, and kohlrabi to liven up your garden. Some of these plants, you'll want to grow in the ground. You can arrange others both on and around your potting benches.

Pair up potting bench colors and the colors of foliage or flowers. Natural white cedar looks frosty or silvery. Lamb's ears is a hardy plant with silvery leaves. Pair white cedar with lamb's ears, and you can carry out a complementary color scheme in your garden.

When you see someone about to discard an object that seems to have potential for you, rescue the object and remake it if necessary. Visit swap shops, flea markets, and yard sales to spark your imagination. Have you always like those shiny gazing globes? Use an old bowling ball nobody wants and make one yourself by gluing tiles to it like a mosaic. You are only limited by the scope of your imagination.

Your use of color and variety determine how attractive and inviting your garden will be. Don't be afraid to experiment. The nice thing about potting benches (especially lightweight models and models with wheels) is that you can move them around. If you don't like the first location, move it to another. Remember to incorporate unusual foliage, colorful vegetables and flowers, and recycled objects into a unified theme.