When we built our Sunglo Greenhouse it came with a built in potting soil tray that was held inside, in a spot on the benches. Handy, yes. Affordable? No. I mean, it was really nice and huge, but if one were to buy it outright…ouch. Anytime it’s a custom piece for a hobby, you know you will pay for it.
And many greenhouses, especially lower cost ones, do not come with a potting soil tray. Or a place for it to be in.
Having a dedicated bin to mix up your potting soil is to me a necessity in homesteading and gardening. One it keeps messes down, but it also allows you to mix up custom blends. This frees you from what too many gardeners do: They buy 1 or 2 cubic foot bags of premixed soil, cut it open and dig out of it as needed. It ends sitting on the floor, leaking, and making a mess. It’s also not at the height you need, and who wants to stoop over? Especially when it is mid-season and you are potting up tomato and pepper plants into bigger pots.
What one sees as an “option” to me isn’t a bonus. If you look on Amazon and in places selling greenhouse accessories, you will see “table top trays” but they have an open front, so you will end up wasting soil constantly.
I however have a simple, under $8, option. And you can find it quickly at your local Home Depot (and many other hardware stores of course).
It’s a Medium Mixing Tub, found in the concrete aisle.
These sturdy tubs can handle 2 cubic feet of mix. With sloped sides so soil doesn’t go everywhere. You can lay a pot tray across it, for easy filling and somewhere to fit the filled pots on.
I have an outdoor table, one of the metal camping ones, that sits outside, next to the greenhouse, where I can work on pots. I have been using it for 5 years and it’s still going. I do it outside to keep all the space in the greenhouse for plants. Take plants out, bring back in. And I am not working in a 100° or hotter greenhouse in May. Under the table I can store my bags of ingredients I use to make soil in the good weather, so I can whip up more soil as needed.
These trays will also sit on a heavy duty shelving in your greenhouse. (Make sure any shelving you have can support the weight, soil isn’t lightweight.)
It’s a cheap, durable solution for your growing.
~Sarah