Pressure Treated Wood For Raised Beds

The preservatives use various types of copper compounds which should pose no hazard to people eating vegetables grown nearby.

Pressure treated wood for raised beds.

Almost every guide included in this round up uses supplies you can get from the hardware store except for this one. Garden use of treated lumber. This instructable takes repurposing to a whole new level. Yes the new pressure treated wood is safe for use for raised garden frames.

However while treated lumber will hold up better over time it can also leach harmful chemicals into your soil. Some have the same look and others are a different approach altogether. The safety of pressure treated wood for garden beds depends on what preservative was used to treat the wood. Inspired natural wood raised bed.

Wood treated with chromated copper arsenate or cca can leach toxic arsenic into soil. If you want to use a pressure treated wood for your raised beds look for lumber with a label stating it was treated with acq alkaline copper quat. When building the raised beds with this lumber make sure you and your scouts wash their hands well after the construction is done. Certain woods such as cedar black locust redwood and cypress are naturally less prone to rot due to the oils in the wood.

Over years the industry in cooperation with government recommendations. Of course the primary concern with using pressure treated wood in raised bed gardens has been with the arsenic in cca chromated copper arsenate treated wood. He stated in a bulletin titled treated wood in raised bed gardening scientific evidence and data have shown that using pressure treated wood for raised bed or box gardening is safe to adults and children in terms of the plants grown and used in these containers he further explains all chemicals in consumer products have a toxicity and most are very low so they are not a problem especially those regulated by the federal government. Up until 2003 the most common preservative used for pressure treated wood was chromated copper arsenate cca a compound using arsenic as its primary rot protectant.

Gardeners have used pressure treated wood for decades in raised beds and as posts but on december 31 2003 the environmental protection agency epa banned the sale of lumber treated with chromated copper arsenate cca for residential use. This publication from pennsylvania state university does a good job describing the risks of using both cca treated wood as well as acq treated wood. Concerns have focused on the leaching of arsenic from pressure treated wood into the soil contaminating plants and people. There are several different alternatives to using pressure treated lumber to build raised beds.

Inspired natural wood raised bed. Modern pressure treated wood should be an acceptable option.