Let’s Build a Reclaimed Wood Tree Bench!

Of all the projects I’ve ever done, this one ranks in the top 5! I didn’t know how much I wanted a bench around our maple tree until I saw my neighbor’s tree bench. We were asked to help out with her dog while they were out of town. While we were playing with the dog in her backyard, I saw her wrought iron tree bench.  It was there when they moved into the house and had that nice, worn, antiqued look that I love so much!  Seeing her bench had me thinking that adding one around our backyard tree would make a great addition to the backyard landscape!  So, the hunt for one began!

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Our Maple tree

We planted our maple tree in 2006. Well, we didn’t plant it. We had tried twice to plant one ourselves and both times, the tree did not make it so this time, we left it to the professionals. You can see in the pics that this tree has loved its location!

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Bench search

I wasn’t ready to invest that kind of $$, so I started looking for one to buy 2nd hand but didn’t have any luck.  After much searching, I decided this new item would have to wait.  About 6 months later, though, Mother Nature came to the rescue! Well, in a way; she provided an idea and the materials to make that idea come to fruition.

Old fencing

It was November and I was out of town visiting my family in sunny Cali when I got a text from hubby breaking the news that we had a huge windstorm and a section of our fence fell down.  Lovely.  I wasn’t overly surprised as our fence is old and weathered.  While I love the look, we have had to either replace or nail up fallen boards many times.  The section that fell was on the west side of our property so we asked our neighbor if he would be interested in building a new section if we paid for it; he agreed and started rebuilding it the following week.  I came home from work on day 2 and our neighbor was digging holes for the fence posts.  I asked where the old boards were and he said they were on his burn pile!!! – gasp! – old weathered wood in a burn pile??!!  Even though I had no idea what I would use the wood for, I asked him to stack the old boards behind our shed; with a confused look, he did just that.

The old fencing lay behind the shed for months until one day as I was browsing Pinterest, I saw pictures of DIY wooden tree benches! Oh, YES! I looked over the instructions and figured it was a project I could tackle and best of all?  FREE!  Well, almost free, I would still need to buy some screws & bolts.  (List of supplies and full instructions are at the bottom of this post. Or, if you prefer to buy a wrought iron Tree Bench, Amazon has a few options, I’ll add one in the ‘If you need supplies’ section)

Downloadable Instruction Guide

Beginning of the project

The example tree bench I saw on Pinterest had no instructions, it was just a picture of the bench. I really liked the simple look of it. So, now that I had an idea of what was needed, I started gathering my tools. The first step in building the tree bench was to decide how large to make the inside row for the seat.  I measured around the tree, allowing for growth then using my miter saw, cut 4 pieces of wood.  Before proceeding with cutting the next pieces of wood, I took them out to the backyard to make sure they were the right size.

Cutting the next rows

Cutting & installing the legs

Now that the seat section of the bench was cut, it was time to decide on the height.  Measuring an existing bench, I decided on a height of 18″. Also using my miter saw, I cut eight 18″ sections of a 2″ x 4″ board, 2 legs for each corner of the bench. Since the boards are approximately 5 1/2″ each, I also cut 18″ sections of 2″ x 4″ to use as supports for attaching the legs to the seat.  The 18″ would allow for a little space between each board. If I wanted larger spacing, I would have made these supports longer. After all the sections were cut, it was time to create the legs.  I drilled holes in the supports and then attached them to the legs with nuts and bolts (see picture below).  Once the 4 legs were assembled, I propped them upright on the garage floor and began screwing each seat board to them beginning with the outer row. I only attached 3 sections, leaving the 4th open so we could move it from the garage to the tree.

Making the seat back

Cutting the facia boards

Installing the bench

Attaching seat back & facia

Applying sealer

The final step in this project was to apply a sealer to the wood to help protect it from the weather.

Finished bench

Downloadable Instruction Guide

Bench Update

Landscaping projects

Supplies Needed

• Four  8’ pieces of 1” x 6” wood
• Three 6’ pieces of 1” x 6” wood
• Four 6’ pieces of 2” x 4” wood
• Screws
• Measuring tape
• 16  3” bolt/nut sets
• Drill
• Skill saw or Miter saw
• Brad nail gun & air compressor
• Waterproofing sealant such as Thompsons Water Seal
• Paintbrush

Instructions

• Decide how large to make the inside row for the seat
• For the seat: Using a miter saw to make 45-degree cuts, cut 4 pieces of wood for the inside row
  • Dry fit around the base of your tree to make sure there is room for growth
• Using the length of the outside of row 1, cut 4 pieces of wood for the 2^nd row with a 45-degree outside edge
• Using the length of the outside of row 2, cut 4 pieces of wood for the 3rd row with a 45-degree outside edge
• For back of bench: cut four pieces of wood, each the length of the inside of the 1st rowThese can be mitered at a 45-degree angle or left squared
• For the facia: cut four pieces of wood, each the length of the outside of the last rowThese can be mitered at a 45-degree angle or left squared
• For legs: cut eight 18″ sections of a 2″ x 4″, two legs for each corner of the bench
• For supports: cut eight 18″ sections of 2″ x 4″
• For leg sets: Place two leg pieces between two support pieces, one on each end
  • At each end, drill holes in the supports & attach them to the legs with nuts and bolts
    • Do this for all 4 leg sets
• Stand leg sets upright with the support at the top
• Using screws, begin attaching the seat to the legs on 3 sides, beginning with the outer row
  • Follow this process with the next two rows of seat boards
  • Leave the 4^th side open and attach them to the bench once it is around the tree
  • You can also build this on site but I found it easier on a level surface
• Move bench to location and position around the tree
• Attach the last 3 pieces of wood of the last seat section
• Once all rows of the seat are attached to the legs, using a nail gun, attach the seat back and facia
• Apply sealant with a paintbrush. This step will help to protect the wood from weathering too quickly

If you need supplies

This post contains Amazon affiliate links. If you choose to order through these links, it will be at no extra cost to you

Let me know your thoughts!

I’d love to hear what you think of this tree bench! Is it something you’d like to add to your garden area? Would you make one? Let me know in the Comment section below this post.

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