The Brilliant Way To Upcycle A Fallen Tree In Your Backyard

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A big, lovely, old tree has fallen in your yard, and you are probably mourning its loss, as you should. But even though it's hard to lose a beautiful tree, it also is a prime opportunity to get your creative sap flowing. An old oak, maple, or other tree with a thick trunk might not be reaching toward the sky anymore, but that doesn't mean it has outlived its usefulness. Your tree can find new life as the primary source for a brilliant upcycle in your backyard, and the basis for one of the many ways to make a DIY garden bench that will blend perfectly into your landscape. Lending a little history to your yard since your tree lived there, the bench can provide a rustic seat and the continuity of memories. Perhaps you had a tire swing hanging from a large branch or picnics in its shade. Create a bench from its trunk and let its new purpose be a place for creating new memories. Building the bench is easier than it might seem.

There are several approaches you could take when it comes to creating a garden bench from a fallen tree. Some builders enjoy the challenge of using only hand tools, others want to make theirs without using nails or screws, and adventurous ones opt to build benches that are as smooth as if the wood were planed in a mill. Your choice of style may be based on your skill level, the type and size of tree available to you, how much time you want to spend working on it, and what your setting and purpose will be.

Whether it comes down unexpectedly or you need to have the tree taken down, giving it new life as a bench makes it easier to accept its loss. Luckily, the process for upcycling the fallen tree into a bench doesn't have to be complicated. One simple style of garden bench is to use a chainsaw to slice a log down the middle lengthwise, resulting in two long half-cylinders. Clean up one of them by using the chainsaw to remove secondary twigs and branches protruding from the trunk. Save two to four sturdy branches to serve as legs. Depending on the log, you may want to keep some of the mosses and bark that give it character. It's wise to wear protective gear, especially if you're new to using a chainsaw. For a complete outfit, you could try Husqvarna's classic personal protective power kit, which includes gloves, chaps, and a helmet that has a full-face shield and earmuffs.

Take note that quality is important in determining if your fallen tree can become a garden bench. If it fell because of a disease or an insect attack, it likely wouldn't be in a healthy condition to use for repurposing. There are other reasons why you should consider leaving that dead tree in your yard alone and possibly not revamp it during your furniture-making side quest. It may be more beneficial in your backyard environment where it can serve as a shelter for a predator that eats mosquitoes. If it's a big fallen tree, you may be able to have both a bench and a mosquito-eater shelter!

One of the best things about turning the trunk of a fallen tree into a garden bench is that it will blend seamlessly into your landscape. The aesthetic of a tree bench could be very natural with barely more than a seat carved out of a log, or it can be formal where the lines of the bench are level, sanded, stained, and varnished. Note that the wood could shrink once it's fully dry and seasoned; it could be a little or a lot, depending on the type of wood.

If you have a plank available, try this easy bench idea: Carve two slits the height of the plank partway through two stumps at equal heights off the ground. Put a stump at each end of the plank, but on opposite sides, and face the slits toward the plank. Push everything together so that the plank rests inside the slits in the log stumps, and you're done. If you have nothing but a stump, you can make a chair and embellish it however you wish. One woman carved a story into the back and seat. At the opposite end of the spectrum, two men turned a giant tree trunk into a couch and even carved side tables into it. There are a lot of creative ways to repurpose an old tree stump in your yard, so even if it turns out that your fallen log is really, really large, go wild and make several benches or add some outdoor chairs or even an entire bistro set to go with it. You might want to stay outside all the time!