Setting the stage
It’s taken a year! My new greenhouse finally went up in September, 2026. There was no staging yet that first winter, though. The fuchsia species did shelter inside but they were arrayed on the floor on upside down black nursery pots along the two sides. It was functional if not very dramatic.
The big problem with getting permanent shelving for the greenhouse was that I knew what I wanted. I just couldn’t find it. The greenhouse is more of a winter display house rather than a working greenhouse. The rest of the fuchsia containers slumber away the cold months in storage in the garage as usual. They’re still fine with that, dreaming their dreams of spring. The greenhouse is for my fuchsia species. They often to flower in the months of December, January, and February in their natural habitats.
In the greenhouse, I didn’t really want tall tables or benches. I already have a great potting bench built into an alcove behind the house. What I envisioned along the two long sides was stepped metal racks with open meshwork on the top “treads” so water would easily drain away to the permeable paved floor. I would stage the pots on raised tiers so that they could be on show.
You’d think stepped staging would be an easy find? Well, yes and no. Ultimately, not really. I thought, “Oh, I‘ll just check nurseries or some big-box stores or Amazon or wherever. Easy!” Nope. I saw a lot of possibilities that I thought might work but, time and time gain, all of them were simply inadequate for some reason or other.
The draw back with metal plant steps is that they’re mostly so flimsy. Also the steps aren’t wide enough for larger pots. Generally, they’re about six to eight inches deep and rise only about that much, too. Often one step is partially tucked under the one above, reducing the width. Great for a few smaller houseplants in the parlor. Not great for fuchsias in larger pots or in heavier pots. Available lengths were also a problem. These things are not good if you want to maximize width and length in a small, 8 x 12 foot space.
The greenhouse was empty in the heat of the summer. The fuchsias were out on the patio and in the garden. Freezing weather would come at some point. It wasn’t until early September that an ideal solution suddenly occurred to me. Industrial Metro Shelving and my own DIY.
I’ve already used these industrial-strength steel shelves in the basement and in the garage. They’re sturdy and strong and the finish is baked-on enamel. I opted for four four-foot long sets with twelve-inch-wide shelves. I calculated that that would leave a center aisle of thirty inches and stop just short of the door frame.
I got them delivered from U-Line near Seattle. You can buy this kind of wire shelving at box stores like Lowe’s but they do skimp on manufacturing quality to make the product cheaper. Also, opting for U-line, I could tailer the sizes to more precisely fit the space and my needs.
Each set of shelves made a rack with three steps and a bonus shelf tucked underneath. I put that fourth one under the top shelf at the same height as the first and added an extra 4-foot brace in there for stability. That fourth shelf has turned out to be an ideal place for holding some trays of cuttings. I cut the poles to my desired heights an measurements with an ordinary clamp-style pipe cutter. There were a few other additions, such as some extra poles to fill in the various heights I had calculated, more of the adjustable leveling feet, and plastic caps.
I saw the prefect plant stands quite by accident at IKEA. They had they had these simple stools with metal legs and a moulded plastic seat. There were even holes in the seat for water drainage. I thought why not? They look good. They’d work perfectly. And the best part? Each one was only $9.95.
