Treating Wood Used To Build Vegetable Garden Planters
This week @gardengirlcanada came to visit me at the shop and gave me a list....You know what that means. Garden season is just around the corner. So she provided me with a few pieces that she needed built for her vegetable garden this Spring. The one question she raised was how would I treat the wood for her vegetable planters. So my post today is going to discuss this very question.
Many people would normally feel that pressure treated wood is the way to go when building planters. They last longer, and avoid rotting with the moisture from the soil. However the chemicals use to treat this pressure treated lumber are harsh and can leach into the soil and eventually the vegetable plants. There is a bunch of ideas that the amount of leaching is so minimal that it really is not a concern, but personally I feel much better to avoid pressure treated wood all together.
Another idea would be to use Hardwoods, they will last longer than softwoods untreated but they are expensive and they will rot over the course of less than 4 years. Really not a long term option.
So what would be an ideal method to built and seal or preserve the wood for vegetable planters for the long term? I have a couple of ideas that work, and are generally accepted that are chemical free. I have attached a Youtube video that speaks to this nature of testing the soil of a raised bed using pressure treated lumber.
My first choice is a homemade conditioner to apply to my wood, made with beeswax and oil. Jojoba oil and Mineral Oil are both good choices for the mix. It is simple to mix and inexpensive. These mixture of both ingredients provide a beautiful finish that will display the natural beauty of the wood. Beeswax will protect the wood surface as it repels the water and dirt. You may also want to use it as a wood conditioner. I use it as a sealant brushed over a base finish of Milk paint, which makes it food-safe and non-toxic. The mix ratio is 4 -oz of beeswax. I use the beeswax pellets, and I use 16 oz of Mineral oil, but again you can use Jojoba oil, either or works great.
So if your asked by your honey to make planters this Spring for the vegetable garden please consider all that I have said in this post. Good luck with your projects. 16 weeks to planting season....
Image Sources:
http://serenitystumps.com/bees-wax-finish.php
I'm getting ready to build some planters since moving into a new house.... I just gotta convince that white crap falling outa the sky to cooperate and go away
Best article, i've learnt something new from it. My home been attacked by the termite badly got holes everywhere on my floor and wall it just a 5 years old new build house. I built it close to the river bank and never thought that termite will be there to destroy all the planks and other woods structure.
Yes I agree the stuff they tantalise wood with is pretty nasty, Iroko is a good wood and would last years and years outside due to its oily nature but like you say it expensive. Nice alternative with the oil and beeswax. Do you use liners in the planters?
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As a new gardener, I never would have thought any different about treating the wood! Thank you for the information!
I've always wondered about the levels of leaching from pressure treated lumber. Thanks for doing the actual testing and reporting the results. I like your non-toxic sealer as the best choice and would probably use a liner of some sort with the other lumber, just to be extra safe.
How long of a life span do you get with the above finishing? I've not had much luck in getting my planters to last more than two years before they begin to break down. Thanks @canadianwoodguy!
What's your opinion of using Trex? I work at a salvage yard and we were gonna throw out about 1000 linear feet so I got a ton for really cheap (and kept it out of the landfill) but I do wonder about how good it really is to build beds from. I did already build the beds so I guess we'll see how it goes but figured your opinion would be good to know.
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Good job! Follow you!