We are often asked by customers ‘what is the best height for greenhouse staging?’ and with over 49 years of experience manufacturing and supplying staging for greenhouses we can not only help with knowing what heights of staging are available but also as we manufacture staging, we can also make it to any height!
So, let’s take a look at what affects the height of the staging we should use in our greenhouse and this will help you to make the correct choice.
What Is The Best Height For Greenhouse Staging? It Depends On You
When you are considering the height of your greenhouse staging you want it to be a good working height. We often recommend measuring the height of your kitchen work surface – kitchen surfaces have been designed to be a comfortable working height for the ‘average’ person, so this is a great place to start.
When we checked our worksurface it measures 36 inches / 91cm high.
What you also should consider is the height of the person who is going to be using the greenhouse the most. You can be stood at your greenhouse staging for long period of time – sowing seeds, potting up, watering etc. – and you want to be able to work in comfort, without having to bend or stretch too much.
Ideally buy your staging from a supplier who manufactures it and offers a tailor-made surface – where you can specify the height you would like your greenhouse staging to be. That's what we offer here at Two Wests & Elliott.
With most greenhouse staging you will find that the height is between 30 inches / 76cm up to 36 inches / 91cm. Our Up Staging, for example, is 30 inches high. The reason that greenhouse staging tends to be lower than a kitchen work surface is that the manufacturers will take other factors into account, which we describe below.
What Is The Best Height For Greenhouse Staging? What Is It Being Used For
Some greenhouse staging is used for potting up, other staging could be used for as a propagation station and more staging used to house plants until they grow large enough to transplant into your garden. You might even have staging which holds greenhouse crops, such as tomatoes, until they finish fruiting. With staging being used for so many different tasks, you may want to have different heights so you can carry out your tasks in comfort.
What Is The Best Height For Greenhouse Staging? Potting Areas
When you are creating a potting area within your greenhouse you need an area which is a good working height – do you intend to work stood up or sat down?
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If you intend to stand up as you pot up in your greenhouse then we have designed our Potting Bench to have a comfortable working height at the front – 36 inches / 91cm – so the same height as your kitchen work surface. This makes it a comfortable place to stand and work for what can otherwise be a back-breaking job! The other benefit with our Potting Bench is that is features a built-in storage hopper where you can keep a supply of compost close at hand. |
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If you prefer to be sat down as you work, then our Potting Table would be a better choice.
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Designed with an open front for sitting at, there will be plenty of room for your legs. We have made it 30 inches / 76cm high – office desks tend to be made to this height so it’s a comfortable height when you are working sat down. The useful 8 inch / 20cm ‘wings’ on either side of this table can be assembled as a flat surface or 2 inch / 5cm deep trays and make the perfect place to keep small tools, such as plant labels, dibbers etc within easy reach. |
What Is The Best Height For Greenhouse Staging? Propagation Areas
If you are creating an area within your greenhouse for propagation, then you need to bear in mind that you will need to reach across the full width of the staging. And, if the propagator has a lid, the height including lid needs to be available so you can open or remove the lid easily when you need to tend your plants.
What Is The Best Height For Greenhouse Staging? It Is Affected By What You Are Growing
Not only will your greenhouse staging height be affected by what you are using it for, it will also be affected by the plants which you intend to grow.
If you are a specialist grower and will be concentrating on a particular species of plant, you will need to take into account the requirements of the plants to ensure they have the best growing environment. This is illustrated in the photograph below.
In 1999 we worked with Mike King from www.carnivorousplants.uk.com to manufacture some benches to house some of his collection of carnivorous plants.
As you can see, Mike provided the height he required so we could make our Commercial Bench the correct size to fit within his 30-foot Robinsons Rosette greenhouse and leave sufficient space for his plants to grow without out growing the height of the greenhouse.
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The photograph opposite is another example of where we worked with a specialist grower, this time to make the perfect staging to suit his alpine collection. |
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In the same photograph you can also see some commercial benching against the right hand wall of the greenhouse which has been made taller as a comfortable working area as plants are grown and potted up.
What Is The Best Height For Greenhouse Staging? Your Greenhouse Size Will Affect It
When you are lucky enough to be growing in a large greenhouse then you can often make best use of the available growing space by having staging situated down the middle of your greenhouse, as well as along each greenhouse wall.
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Having staging in the centre allows you to walk all around the staging and work from either side of the staging. This is one of the reasons why we produce our Commercial Benching in widths of up to 48 inches / 122cm. We wouldn’t expect you to stretch across the whole width to work, but when you can work from both sides this size of benching works perfectly. |
If you have a large, bespoke built greenhouse then you might also face other challenges when it comes to getting the correct size of staging to fit.
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In the photograph opposite you can see our Two Tier Commercial Benching being used at it’s standard height of 30 inches / 76cm. However, what we have done for this grower is to move the lower tier further off the ground than the standard 8 inches / 20cm. This is now allowing more usable storage space below the lower level. Whilst enabling the lower tier to be used for a mixture of growing and storage. |
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What you can also see in the photo is that the benching has been designed to fit around an inverted corner. This has produced a more streamline fit for the staging – rather than using two separate stagings overlapping one another.
What Is The Best Height For Greenhouse Staging? What Is It Made From?
When you are choosing staging for your greenhouse you need to keep in mind that the staging needs to be strong, capable of supporting your plants, their pots and the weight of their wet compost – which can all weigh very heavy!
You also need to consider the environment which your staging is being used in. A greenhouse is not watertight, sterile or clean environment – there will be moisture, pests, soil, debris etc etc all part of a working greenhouse. So you should consider this when you are looking at staging to ensure it will be hardwearing enough for the day to day wear and tear it will have to put up with.
When it comes to the materials that might be used to make the staging, traditionally it would have been timber staging, in the past few decades aluminium staging has become more popular and you will also find some greenhouse staging or shelving made from a range of different plastics. Let’s take a look at some of the pros and cons of each type to help you choose the correct type of staging for your greenhouse.
What Is The Best Height For Greenhouse Staging? Timber Staging
There are a range of different types of timber used to make greenhouse staging and will be reflected in the price you pay.
Premium cedar staging comes with a premium price and this is because it contains naturally occurring preservative which makes it naturally resistant to rot – so no chemical treatments are required.
A more economical timber to use is tanalised timber which is timber that has been pressure treated to preserve the wood. Tanalised timber is long lasting as the treatment is applied to all parts of the wood – unlike some timber treatments which are painted on so only protect the surface of the wood.
One of the things to look out for when buying a good quality timber staging for your greenhouse is whether it has been treated – for example, if you see a staging described as being ‘pressure treated’ it has been treated against both rot and insect attack.
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A good example of a pressure treated greenhouse bench is the Premium Potting Station shown opposite. Not only has the timber been treated, but the manufacturers have also fixed a zinc coated metal work surface to the top, making the potting up area very hard-wearing as well as being easy to clean. Looking at the height, as it has a higher level shelf the overall height is 5ft 4 inches / 162cm, whilst the work surface height is 2ft 8 inches / 82cm – a good working height if you want to sit down whilst you pot up. |
A better working height if you prefer to stand up as you pot up your plants is this Wooden Potting Bench below.
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This potting bench has a working height of approx. 36 inches / 92cm and with retaining boards on three sides, this makes a neat working space. This is another timber product which has been pressure treated – and in this case the manufacturers have backed this with a 15 year anti-rot guarantee. |
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What you should always remember when choosing timber staging for your greenhouse is that it is a natural product and by it’s very nature can differ in colour, in grain and could include knots integrated into the wood. No two pieces will be the same and depending on the item you buy, you could find that it has been sanded smooth or left quite rough (this is usually indicated in the product description).
When selecting your timber staging, unless you can find a manufacturer who offers a bespoke served – so a joinery company making staging to order – you are going to be faced with set sizes which can’t be altered – including the height of the greenhouse staging. Don’t be tempted to think that if an item is too tall or too long you can amend it yourself – cutting the timber will often invalidate the guarantee and could leave a raw edge to the timber which has not been treated.
When using timber staging within your greenhouse you will face some common problems which will cause you to give more time to cleaning and maintenance of this type of staging, compared to if you were to use aluminium or plastic staging. These include:
- Damp and Mould – typically greenhouse staging will be exposed to water and the humid conditions within your greenhouse. For timber this can cause it to become damp and potentially mouldy – which could cause problems with plant health if left untreated.
- Exposure To Sunlight – your staging will be exposed to lots of sunlight throughout the year, which could cause the timber to warp or discolour.
- Insect Damage – although we are used to pests on our plants, if you have timber staging you could be affected by wood-boring insects causing damage to your staging.
You can help to reduce some of these problems by carrying out regular cleaning – using a brush to remove any debris or dirt, a damp cloth to sipe down work surfaces – and by protecting the timber by covering the top surfaces with plastic to reduce its exposure to water.
What Is The Best Height For Greenhouse Staging? Aluminium Staging
Aluminium staging has become popular with gardeners as it is virtually maintenance-free and won’t rust or rot in humid conditions. Aluminium also combines the qualities of being lightweight – making it easier to construct and move if required – with superior strength – it’s a long-life material that won’t degrade over time. When selecting aluminium staging, to make sure that you are getting a quality product which will be strong enough to support your plants, look for the following features:
What Is The Best Height For Greenhouse Staging? Are the legs in one piece?
To ensure the strength of our aluminium staging we always ensure that the legs are supplied as one piece of aluminium.
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We do this even when a customer requests a special height for their staging. We are able to do this as we manufacture the staging in our Derbyshire warehouse. This means we can create unique legs to the exact length required to suit any order. |
What Is The Best Height For Greenhouse Staging? How many legs are there?
The legs of the greenhouse staging not only affect its height, but they also affect how strong the staging is.
The legs support the working surface of the staging where your plants in their pots or seed trays will be stood as they grow. This means that the weight on the staging will evenly be distributed through the number of legs which the staging has. It therefore follows that the more legs the staging has, the stronger and more robust it will be.
What Is The Best Height For Greenhouse Staging? Are there bracing bars?
With some greenhouse staging you will see bracing bars being included. These are used to increase both the sturdiness and the strength of the structure.