Creating Bonsai Shelving and Benches

[fredman]

LoL...Yeah I have to say I'm looking at it more and more everyday... how strong is a clay pot really...? I guess when its in a stable/still position its good, but the real test will be is when the earthquake comes. We had a run of a few weeks last year. Mostly they were all smooth rock and rollers, which is kinda fun. Its the sudden jolt ones that will test it.... well more than that actually. The pots might fly off the shelves.....

 

[lieuz]

I finally got around to measuring everything. I've been putting it off due to weather and overall laziness. Times when I do want to measure, it's too cold and some snow still remains, obstructing the measuring area. Then there are times when we get torrential rain. Today was perfect, no excuses. I did notice quite a few things when I was measuring and that the fence is really not that stable some had warned previously. If I were to mount anything onto the fence I really need to figure out a way to not use those flimsy boards (meant to obstruct view) and rather mount it on the actual post. There is also a bit of a grade that I might not be able to work with. I do plan to spread mulch all over to cover the grassy area. So far, the initial measurement gives me an idea of what I can work with. @sorce You had mentioned moving those sheds, I thought about it but, I have a plan for the shed and actually thought long and hard if I should keep it or not. For the time being, I think it's going to work.

 

[JoeR]

What does yall's work area look like? Is it Inside or outside?


I need a work table and area that is easy to clean up afterwards. I have a scrap sheet of stainless steel I would like to make the top with. Something tall would be nice.


Ideas?

 

[lieuz]

@JoeR currently, I dont have anywhere to work either . I have gone over it hundreds and hundreds of times in my head and I don't think I can build the entire thing out of wood, because I want mobility. I have really studied some of the other suggestions and am really gearing towards the cinder block idea. One of the suggestions shows a 5"x5" post put in the middle to give stability. I really really like that idea. Maybe you could do the same thing @JoeR, like build it up with cinder blocks, last I checked it was like 1.50 at home depot. Create a surface made out of wood so you can add your stainless steel on top, like a veneer finish.

 

[sorce]

Ideas?

That sounds excellent...
If want a removeable flush stainless bowl to hold water to throw cuttings in.
Hold a tree in...

Stainless idea is great!

Sorce

 

[CWTurner]

a 5"x5" post put in the middle to give stability.

Never heard of a 5x5 post, but a plain old 4x4 will work, you just need to pour some gravel into the hole in the block to stabilize it.
CW

 

[lieuz]

@CWTurner Sorry I meant 6"x6" deck post. And that gravel idea is great. I was wondering how I could give it more stability.

 

[lieuz]

Update:

I checked with my local big box store for materials and came up with this elevation plan. I plan to have three benches supported on cinder blocks so I can move them around if needed. There was still one thing I was pretty anxious about and that was leveling off a small mound closer to the shed. I put my foot down and decided it will be gravel, so my next steps are to prep the yard area for the gravel.

 

[lieuz]

With all this warm weather I was pretty worried about not having a place to put my trees so I really had to step it up. I went back through my picture records and noted when trees have their buds swell and bloom on a few trees and from what I can gather, April 4 of last year is what I have to work with so I'm about 3 weeks away from seeing bud swelling. Due to daylights savings, by the time I'm home it's almost pitch dark so the only times I'll get to work on this is typically weekends so I gotta pace myself. It's a good thing that we spring forward this weekend, well good and bad of course (how the hell is this still a thing?!) I borrowed a shovel from my parents and last night after dinner around 8, I took out all the bonsai from their dormant mulch pile and pretty much spread the excess mulch all over the grass. There is a small mound that I was able to level off and now the yard is visibly leveled.







So my next step would be to give this area another good rake and tamp down the soil a bit to give a more level surface. Come this weekend, I'll be putting up fabric weed blocker on top of all of this and hammer in those steel landscape fabric staples. Then I'll be ready to add edging along the fence posts to create a physical barrier to the gravel. I was most concerned with that little slight grade and had to take care of it because with the gravel, I was most concerned with anyone taking that step down from the brick pavement. It's almost like walking on ball bearings or marbles and that's the last thing I need. Shame on the white paint on that fence, tsk...

 

[GrimLore]

I'll be putting up fabric weed blocker on top of all of this

Don't bother - it will not help much at all. If you want a barrier that stops things from growing up trough the gravel use 8 mil plastic and 3-5 inches of gravel. Weeds will sometimes show up no matter what but less likely with the 8 mil barrier. The seeds from weed just need 1/8th of most any surface to pollinate but the plastic under the gravel creates a bit of heat in a sunny location and really helps as it stays very dry. My avatar that crushed stone is spread over it average 4 inch depth and rarely had a weed of any sort. That is a good size area and required 5 1/2 ton of stone.

Grimmy

 

[lieuz]

@GrimLore I have been trying to contact you via PM but won't let me for some reason. I've been wanting to inquire about your rock/stone setting because I think it looks really beautiful. Mix of shade and light, a natural gradient. Thanks for the tip, 4 inches is seriously deep!

 

[GrimLore]

@GrimLore I have been trying to contact you via PM but won't let me for some reason. I've been wanting to inquire about your rock/stone setting because I think it looks really beautiful. Mix of shade and light, a natural gradient. Thanks for the tip, 4 inches is seriously deep!

I will check my settings there - They have changed in the past causing problems...

I might add that it is best to lay it out so it drains off easily - the under grade can slope and the stone can be level. Also at the fence line allow some air space at the bottom I try to get at least 2 - 3 inches for good air circulation. It save problems down the road.

Grimmy

 

[lieuz]

@GrimLore that's a very true statement, and with the 4 inches or so, I can definitely see your point. In regards to your fence statement, the face is about 1 to 2 inches from the actual ground. I was worried about erosion out so I decided to add the edger. So are you saying I should probably not use the edger?

 

[GrimLore]

So are you saying I should probably not use the edger?

Avoid trapping everything in the area at ground level, think air circulation and water drainage at the base of the fence. Last Spring was the second year at this place and because the previous owners used the weed cloth, marble and buried bricks as an edger it trapped water. The Spring was odd and it triggered a bacteria that killed every potted deciduous tree I had. I have since removed all of that, a lot of topsoil, all of the plants and sent all off to landfill. I treated all year and will still apply another treatment in a week or two before I proceed. It is a hard lesson but hopefully could help others

On that note we always provide drainage even on grow beds and cold frames.

Grimmy

 

[lieuz]

@GrimLore My God, that is horrifying. I hope you were able to save as many trees as possible. So what I'm gathering is weed barriers separate the soil from the mulch and don’t allow proper biological activity and drainage to take place. Mulch, compost, and anything else you place on top of the soil requires actual contact with the soil to properly decompose. This is quite an expensive lesson to learn...

 

[sorce]

April 4 of last year is what I have to work with so I'm about 3 weeks away

I got buds already......
We haven't had a March spring here since 2012, or 13.

It shouldn't be too long for you!

Sorce

 

[lieuz]

Update:
Got a great weather window on Saturday, we were slated to get rain but didn't; however, when Sunday rolled around, man did we get rain. I worked with what I could and got as much done as much as I could. I think the hard stuff is completed. I ended up with getting 30 bags of river gravel and got like 2 inches overall. I got a few blocks to outline the bench area. There's also something I improvised with. By the fence door there's this slope and I didn't want to put any gravel there as I know, it'll just escape out. I decided to take these bits of small slates of clay and arranged it to create a buffer/barrier. If it doesn't work out, it can be removed and I can place some sort of brick pavement there. All in all, I like how it turned out. I'm sore still and felt like an ant on Saturday and decided to just relax the rest of the weekend. I still got a bit more work to do but not 30 bags of gravel worth of labor.

 

[lieuz]

Here are some of the progress photos I managed to take when I'm not hauling bags. I tell you, the most calming of all is raking that gravel. It goes without saying, my ASMR is walking on gravel paths lol.

Trip 1:
I decided to not use the fabric and place it directly on top of the mulch.


To prevent the gravel from escaping out of the fence slats, I decided to place those pieces ontop of the mulch rather than to the actual ground.


Unloaded.


Buffer zone.


After the first 12 bags.

 

[lieuz]

The rest of the bags.


My little dolly haha.

 

[sorce]

Nice.
I like the entryway!

Sorce