For almost 8 years we’ve propagated most of our annual plants (and some perennials) between our sunny dining room table and random patches of grass around the garden. Often the plants I germinate in the pots left in the garden are forgotten about and I unintentionally kill them cause they’re hiding behind the giant corn patch, or the comfrey leaves grew over them. In other words it’s all been a bit random.

Not any more folks. The propagation station of my dreams is here. It’s compact, efficient and easy on the eye. AND it doubles as a wash station for us to clean any excess dirt off crops before bringing them into the kitchen. We’re feeling very pleased with ourselves.

And when the door’s are closed…

Key features include

The sink: The bench is a sink from the tip shop. This means it’s easy to clean, can be happily soaked with water most the time and is darn hardy.

The cupboard: This is where we store pre-mixed potting mix, pots/trays, watering can and a bucket to catch the water from the sink. Eventually we’ll plum it into a garden drain – but for now, it’s more than fine.

The little tray thingo: I’m in love with this $3 tray from the tip shop. This is where all the random little irrigation/hose bits will live, plus some tools I frequently need for propagating. No more losing them throughout the garden.

The shelf: Made from some steel mesh stuff (also from the tip shop), this is where pots/trays will live while growing up. We water them with a watering can and all the excess water flows through the mesh into the sink and the bucket below. Very nice and tidy.

The whole set up is beneath a clear polycarbonate roof – so plenty of sun and it’s protected from strong winds. However in the depths of winter it’s still too cold to germinate plants, so we’ll still germinate some seedlings inside on our sunny dining table and in our cold frame.

Slowly, we’re implementing our property design where little nooks like this result in efficient systems and practices becoming the norm. Goodbye random!