Not good for your veges, you, your kids, pets, other critters or the environment. No toxins, no messy linseed. http://files.recycleworks.co.uk/files/Wood%20preservatives.pdf While NOT wood, I was surprised you did not address the use of TREX type material!! Very interesting information on this subject. And all it took was some heat. Straw Bale Gardening The first step to a successful raised garden bed, no matter the method you use to build it, is to level the ground. (No, we didn't eat sprouts during the depression and didn't have electricity.) The person who posted it claims it came from an organic vegetable gardening book which seems hard to believe - even in 1994 when the book was published they should have known how harmful these things can be! Good quality cedar or locust that would really last would cost a ridiculous amount in comparison. I hope that helps. The same beams wouldn't make 2 years in southern Louisiana. It is made with cement and cement does have additives in it. This warrants an entire academic paper, but heres the abridged version. Your email address will not be published. Interestingly, mineral oil, vaseline, mineral spirits are all petrochemicals that can be called "minerals" - since they came from the ground. I did line the wood with 6-mil polyethylene sheeting, as a precaution against damp. Read More Find Your Nearest Location Find It A wooden raised bed is a classic choice in the garden, relatively inexpensive, and easy to get started with. This long enduring complexity with all of the chemical background noise makes it impossible to link a single death to a single product. Next, attach the two ends with the 6-ft.-long 28s. ", "Hi Rita, I'm not sure about whether trex leaches chemicals. This is now deteriorating to personal attacks rather than answering questions. What was the question? Possibly. There is an interesting discussion thread on CedarShield here: http://cr4.globalspec.com/thread/47195/Opinions-Wanted-Cedarshield-Petri-Wood-Permatek Of course there is plenty more out there on the web. I found some stuff online that effects HDPE, but its mostly strong stuff like xylene or REALLY strong acids or bases, not stuff you'd find ina garden. It was very costly, but we believe it will pay off in the long-run. I've just noticed you wrote the article 5 years ago! Not all my plantings are doing well this year, though mostly they were fine the last two years. Leveling the ground first makes it easier to build your raised bed and keeps it in good shape longer because theres less stress on the wood. I have all kinds like rabbits,squirrels, raccoons, moles,chipmunks, you name it..I would have to fence it in, Appreciate your info.Thank You. I can't get too detailed on suggestions because you didn't mention size and location A big planter in a southern location might benefit from a shade tree to filter sun on part of the planter. I have seen what happens to plastic when it has been outdoors, exposed to the elements, baking under the sun, freezing under the snow, pelted by the rain, etc. Habitat is a great place to shop for all sorts of tools, materials, furniture- you name it, and also to donate tools and material and furniture and appliances you no longer need, as long as they are in usable condition. Fairly easy to cut with scissors and just staple to the inside of your boards. This material is much safer than it used to be (no more tanalith, which gave tanalised timber its name) but I still would prefer a long-lasting natural alternative. Interior - clear Timber Pro UV Internal Wood Stabilizer (Portland, OR) which combines "penetrating exotic oils and transoxide pigments for unequaled product performance", and 2.) 99 Derby Street, Suite 200 Besides, noone was talking about burying it underground to begin with, we are talking about raised bed gardening, full sun, and hdpe is not a wood treatment. All plastic leaches to some degree, and I'm not about to grow plants in wet soil, baking in the sun surrounded in toxin leaching plastic (sun and moisture make plastic leach more). This wouldn't take longer than covering with preservative and I think it might prolong the life of the planks themselves. deck screws to reinforce the corner seams and keep them from popping open or developing a crack where soil can escape. Reference the exploded view illustration above and follow the simple steps outlined below to create a simple garden bed out of wood that you can easily customize to fit your needs. I am involved with putting a raised bed in our town centre with 'Help Yourself' Herbs in it for the public. By Phil Wood Fine Gardening - Issue 111. Essentially I used the plan found here: http://www.sunset.com/garden/backyard-projects/ultimate-raised-bed-how-to-00400000011938/ It was the best plan I found online for the do-it-yourselfer. Wood is a very versatile material for vegetable gardens. ", "We used Eco Wood Treatment on pine in 2011 for our greenhouse. 6 Reasons to not build raised beds -. Untreated wood may last five years or so, depending on your climate. Over what period of time does this happen? So, the situation now is that one can spray a crop with huge amounts of copper that are totally soluble, readily leachable and freely available to the plants (and still keep to "organic" standards), but can't plant in a raised bed using wood where the copper is bound to the wood. Any thoughts or suggestions? ", "Hay bale gardening. They run about $2.60 each, so a 4 x 96 approx. ", "I have used 3ml and 8ml plastic inside my flower planters and it considerably extends the life of wood pots made from pine or fur. Decide placement of your raised bed and mark with marking spray or a line of flour or sand. I am ", "hi, [I applied two coats of each product to one side and half of the other sides, so that the timber faces that are unseen between adjacent timbers are protected, as well, and the two products meet on the hidden sides. Nasty looking as they would group together and look like a black moss. Any suggestions? This setting should only be used on your home or work computer. They are light years behind the times and do nothing to protect people. I know it is used on cutting boards, says it is food safe and can be taken internally, and helps with moisture a little but needs to be re-applied. Cedar or redwood is ideal except for expense and possibly the downside of using those precious woods. I don't like the plastic decking as I don't believe what they say about how it doesn't leach. ", "Useful thread, and refreshingly lacking criticism of each others knowledge levels (bar one!). ", "I just bought some terracotta pots to plants veggies in. Would there be any nasties in the fibrolite we purchase today unlike years ago when it contained asbestos? And its a great way to use the material you already have (or can buy at a reasonable price). Straw bales. ", "Seems like the raw untreated wood from the sawmill would be the healthiest. CJ on Monday 6 June 2016", "Thanks for the follow-up comment CJ! 2. I am now worried that planting vegetables in this bed may not be a good idea? It's not worth the time and I wouldn't risk getting anything nasty in my vege gardens. In Hawaii, bamboo is scortched for just this purpose. Start with four 44 posts cut to the desired height of your raised bed. ", "I am interested to build raised, movable beds and i wonder if my used cooking oil from the deep fryer would work if applied with brush while still warm. I purchased some 'U' channel steel 40mm wide x 5mm thick x 500mm long, welded two together for each corner at 90 to each other to create posts and concreted them in their respective positions then cut to length and dropped timber boards into the channels to create the basic framework for the beds and purchased 'X' tons of topsoil to fill the beds. I learned about cold beds from my older brother who got it in Ag.class in 1942. Each of these chemicals can potentially interact with living organisms (including humans) in thousands of ways. Sustainably sourced. The srticle is here: We are evening installing hardware cloth under the beds and footpath areas to deter burrowing critters. I want to preserve the planter of course but it defeats the purpose of having an organic garden if toxins from the preservative will be absorbed into our food anyway. Crown frame can be raised with a loose 2x4 block at each corner. Raised Garden Beds Near Paris, Tennessee Buy and sell used raised garden beds with local pick-up or shipped across the country Log in to get the full Facebook Marketplace experience. You can find decorative corner brackets to dress up your raised garden bed, or some that allow you to eliminate the corner post and simply fit your side wall boards into the corner bracket for quick and easy construction. We have clay soil. 7 years and counting without replacing a single board yet and in the NW that's pretty darn good. The beds are re-configurable, as I joined the boards using concrete planter wall blocks. A 100 roll of 6mil, 10 wide liner goes a long way. ", "Is it advisable to use plastic lawn edging between your softwood untreated planks of the raised bed to prevent soil from touching the wood? I enjoyed reading your post. Whey do they last forever in a landfill and break down if we bury therm in our yards? Todays health hazard is tomorrows cure, like eggs and butter. ", "Tim mentioned: 2) I might try Hugulkultur in the raised-beds, which I did not do in these case. I used the Eco Wood Treatment (that is the actual name). It doesn't matter if it's not totally decomposed. I have no reason to believe that this black plastic gives off any chemicals like some other plastics do, and there's no indication that it is embrittling, which would indicate loss of plasticizers. Just a thought to pass on. A cover crop like buckwheat or clover helps as well as amendments like vermiculite or pumice but the best is organic matter contained in compost and those product names I mentioned. It looked rough hewed and I could not identify what kind of wood it was. Which are you going to believe Jon? RE: ROT- I don't mind! I heard the southern states have trouble but then everything is shipped all over now. The possibilities are (almost) endless! You don't say if you actually used it yet or what project you are building. and this http://www.archchemicals.com/Fed/WOOD/Products/PreservativeProtection/tanalised.htm ft. ", "We are a Log Building Company based on the West Coast of Scotland. It all depends on the recipe that the maker used Jon. Secondly, I will try the ECOWOOD treatment though I would like to know the ingredients and not just take the company's word for it being safe. They save water. It sounds too good to be true, but I have used it in boat drinking water systems to protect from freeze damage, because it is "safe" to drink per the manufacturer. Its also a bit more challenging to find than cedar, and it aint cheap. Each panel was cut length - wise with a skil saw , corners bolted together using the aluminum channel that the panels were framed in, and metal rods (pipes) driven into the earth every couple feet around the perimeter for a little extra support. HDPE is a petroleum chemical byproduct, granted it is a little better than most, it is still a plastic. Apply your mixed soil to your beds. One disadvantage for gardeners who wish or need less stooping. Call me paranoid or a conspiracy theorist or just call me cautious. Did you just order it thru their main website and how much was it? That's the way it goes. (There is one nonproductive hazelnut I may simply remove, but the improvement may be minimal due to neighbor's trees.) Many thanks. I do not have any information on the durability and rot resistance for our garden bed applications at this time. ", "Just an addendum to my previous post. ", "google concrete additives. A better alternative is recycled plastic boards which are long lasting and available from companies such as Link-a-Bord (or Gardeners Supply Company in the US). Cedar is one of the most popular untreated woods used in raised gardening. the need to plan as the size of the tiles determines the length of the sides and, if the bed has Here's how to easily build a raised bed garden in just a few minutes for pennies on the dollar! I think its a nice look. However, before I got far with this idea, I saw a person's raised bed gardens with softwood walls. Add your own thoughts on the subject of this article: ", "I used untreated recycled scaffold boards to edge my garden beds, on the basis that they would last 3-4 years and then be replaced. You can surely Google out the science behind it.", "You started with some info in sealing concrete block beds and everoything after the first few articles were for wood beds. Compost is the best but there are also items by Dr. Earth, EB Stone, Fox Farm and Down to Earth. ", "Just talked to the guys at Timber Ox Green. You do, however, have other options for your raised beds. Here is a list: http://eartheasy.com/live_nontoxic_paints.htm The thing about paint that I discovered in my research is that it doesn't provide the same protection as a wood preservative and, in contact with soil and water, tends to "bubble up" or wear off but, I imagine, it would extend the life of the wood significantly further than doing nothing to protect it. im looking into building half a dozen raised garden beds, i have around 50 metres of second hand oregon timber, painted inside and out. It was $16.49 base price for a gallon with the whole thing coming to nearly $25 with shipping and tax. Plan to coat with raw linseed oil, or maybe EcoWood (but not knowing EcoWood ingredients gives me pause). We have chicken/pest covers over all our raised beds so we get to eat something for all our efforts. Also, don't paint just the outside walls or the wood will take up water and have no way to dry out. i have used it. The other link indicates that it uses "plastics" but does not specify which ones. Just a little extra work every 3 (or maybe even more !!) ", "To avoid all manufactured products try the following. It promotes penetration of porous surfaces and has high adhesion for superior protection as a decorative colorant. Its largely resistant to rot and termites, and its relatively easy to find. (this is refined linseed oil as compared to raw linseed oil) We're using untreated douglas fir. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); With your FREEBIE, youll also receive regular email messages from the Food Gardening Network. When you have both the top and bottom for your raised bed, it's time to connect the 2 pieces. ", "The green powder in Lifetime or Eco Wood Treatment is ferrous sulphate and the white powder is actually baking soda. ", "Cedar is a great way to go but you need thick boards for durability and, if you are building large beds or more than one, it can get very expensive. I dunno, I'm sure if you beat it or leave it exposed to the sun for years or use harsh chemicals on it, the results wouldn't be good. Redwood. The 4-foot sides will slope from 12" to 4". However, my family is the one eating the vegetables from the beds andI would hate to have this concoction leaching into the fresh produce I feed to my children. I simply have dug out paths between wide ridges, so that the growing areas are low mounds like the old ridge and furrow system. ", "Here's an idea - why use raised beds? There are several considerations around the best type of wood for raised beds. I'm sure the industry that produces and sells propylene glycol will claim it is safe until you either force them to drink a glass of it or someone forces them to tell the truth. ", "I'm pretty excited about using recycled fiberglass garage door panels for my raised beds. Ellie and boom king nailed that coffin shut, hdpe is a big fat no. ", "Does anybody know the implications of painting an elevated garden bed with normal water based paint. ", "Scott: what brand / model of landscape cloth are y", "Last year we made a raised planter for our vegetables. Wood from various sources including some removed from our roof when we had a loft conversion was used. I ONLY WORKED AS A GARDEN LABOURER FOR TWO YEARS AND SAW THW NEED AND OPPORTUNITY TO VENTURE IN THIS TYPE OF BUSINESS. In any case, as far as I can tell it doesn't do anything to preserve the wood, just turns it grey. It grays the wood, which, for me, is a deterrent. As an example, a 2-inch x 6-inch x 10-foot long cedar board runs about $25. Here is a link for that - http://www.smartplanet.com/blog/thinking-tech/new-invention-turns-plastic-bags-into-oil/6295 ", "what about concrete blocks or bricks for raised beds? These will last your lifetime. But 15 years is nothing to sneeze at. I have been looking for a. Do you think that foul plastic taste can corroborate the argument you made? Ill go slightly against the current on treated wood. ", "Here's another video supporting the use of baking soda: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qugVIOYi1xc. Details of the extent of this problem are hard to come by but the following treatments are commonly questioned: So what can be done to preserve the wood used on vegetable plots? The base of the raised bed will rest on the . Pros: Wood raised beds are easy to install, and the material is readily available in most areas. 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Implications of painting an elevated garden bed with normal water based paint its a great way to use the is... To cut with scissors and just staple to the inside of your raised beds or bricks for beds... X 96 approx the boards using concrete planter wall blocks we are a Log building Company on! And OPPORTUNITY to VENTURE in this bed may not be a good idea simply remove, but heres the version! One of the chemical background noise makes it impossible to link a single board and...