The garden seat is a somewhat heavy project for a girl to attempt without the help of an older brother or some man. I have included this model in this book because it is so simple to make, is very beautiful and useful in the garden and costs very little for material— practically nothing, if you have your own logs.

Oak is a fine wood to use for making the garden seat. You can make it any length you wish; five or six feet would make a nice bench. Select a log about 15" or a little more in diameter; have this log sawed in half at the local saw mill. This will give you the tops for two such seats. For the two upright supports, use logs about 10" in diameter, and long enough so that the seat, when completed, will be 17" high off the ground, and so that these two posts can be set into the ground about 21/2 feet deep. Strip the logs of any bark for before long, the bark will come off of its own accord, and this will leave the wood without an oil finish.

Method Of Procedure

Step No. 1: This garden seat is put together in the following manner. Turn the half log over to rest on the flat side (round side up). Now cut into the log part so that the upright pieces will fit.

Step No. 2: Bore a hole through the seat so as to go into the center of the upright pieces. These holes should be bored to take a 3/4" lag screw. The entire head of the lag screw should be buried about an inch beneath the top surface of the seat and when the entire job has been assembled, plug up these holes on the top.

Step No. 3: It will be a little easier work if holes are dug for the two upright pieces; put these pieces in place

(but do not put back the earth as yet); then fasten the seat on to the uprights, pack the dirt back around the upright posts.

Step No. 4: To preserve this garden seat, which must stand up against all kinds of weather, apply a liberal coat of boiled linseed oil to the entire job on both sides and ends. Wipe off the surplus oil and allow at least a week for this oil to dry out before attempting to use the seat.

At least once each year, it is advisable to apply a liberal coat of oil to this seat to prevent the wood from drying out too much, which would cause large checks in the wood. If you use the oil you will find that the seat will last a great deal longer and remain in good condition.