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I have always enjoyed growing plants. After more than a decade working in the nursery industry, when I grow plants for my own use in my yard, I prefer growing them in the manner that is familiar to me: in plug trays. But rather than using the packs that are standard for retail sales, I prefer these deep plug trays that produce better root systems. ⇨ After seeing the results I had this past growing season, I had a friend ask me to grow plants for her, too. Another said that she knows other people who would like to buy my plants. But that sounds like a business… one that is not allowed by the current city code because it’s outside the home. So far, most of the seedling production I have done has taken place on the back side of the house, where even my neighbors had no idea of the extent of my plant production. But if I can expand my production (grow more species and in larger quantities), I would need to use other parts of the yard. I have spoken with the neighbors who would be most directly impacted by this and have their support for adding benches on which to grow the plants. You might be wondering why I would want to use benches rather than growing the plants directly on the ground. There are two reasons. 1. We have rabbits in our yard. Raising the plants off the ground would reduce the risk of damage. 2. Invasive Asian Jumping Worms (Amynthas agrestis) can be found in Ramsey County and are a serious threat. Several organizations that used to rely heavily on donated plants (divisions from people’s gardens) for plant sales have changed policies in the last couple years to no longer accept donations in order to reduce the risk of spreading jumping worms. I do not know if there are any jumping worms in my yard at this point, but I want to keep my seedlings off the ground to minimize any risk. Here are examples of two bench types that I am interested in. They both have a UV stable plastic top, with either a wood or metal frame and are supported by either metal legs or cinder blocks (which distribute weight better, but are less attractive). Benches can range in size from 4’x8’ to 4’x12’. I do not know how many I would need at this point since that would depend on how well seeds germinate. (I’m guessing 2-4 to start.) But since I do not want to damage either my lawn or my flower beds, it is my intention to only have benches in areas where grass does not currently grow well, such as under large trees or where ground ivy has taken over the lawn. Because our yard is surrounded by a hedge, the benches should not be highly visible from the road, although I could add screening if necessary to make up for gaps in the hedge. It is my intention to conduct all sales online. In the area behind the house–where I’m currently growing plants–I would like to have a bench or rack where customers could pick up pre-assembled orders. (Since they’d be grown in a tray of 50 rather than a set of smaller, labeled packs, individual plants would need to be “popped out” and put into a tray for the customer.) -Kerri Seemann