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Edging/raising beds *without* pressure treated wood

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  • Edging/raising beds *without* pressure treated wood

    I've searched and googled for an answer to this but as yet haven't been able to find anything useful.

    I've realised that I'm going to need some sort of edging around the beds on my allotment if I'm to avoid having the soil spilling out onto the paths between them. Having read something last year about chemicals from pressure treated wood leaching out - more so when in contact with "rich" soil - I'm not inclined to use treated wood, which leaves me wondering what to do to prevent the wood rotting away in the space of a year or two.

    I saw mention of "slab" wood (the bits cut off a log when a sawmill is squaring it up) in another thread on here - which is a possibility.

    Otherwise all I can see working is using sawn planks with some sort of oil or paint on them to stop the rot.

    As I understand it, paint seals the wood so any moisture that gets in (or is in to start with) can't escape as the wood can't breathe.

    I've never used oil before and wonder how it would hold up in that kind of environment.


    So, when it comes to the boards themselves and also to the stakes I'll need to drive in to hold them in place... what are my options and how can I best stop them rotting without needing to spend a fortune on treatment?
    I expect the stakes would have a pretty hard time of it being stuck a couple of feet into the ground like that, is there a different approach that would work better with them than for the boards?

    Oh - and I don't fancy the plastic-lined treated-wood option as it strikes me as a bit laborious and a proably unnecessary use of plastic, something I'm trying to stop doing.

  • #2
    what about no wood? plain old paving stones or similar? or as Two Sheds has, wine bottles.

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    • #3
      Plastic drink bottles - would they work? either way, get supping wine or orange squash
      aka
      Suzie

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      • #4
        I did wonder about ordering a trailer load of coppiced hazel and edging the beds with a hazel edging woven in situ. I found a supplier and everything then he got silly on the prices.
        Whooops - now what are the dogs getting up to?

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        • #5
          I appreciate the stuff I've got isn't easy for everyone to get hold of, but with a bit of imagination the world is your lobster!

          The Hay Wayne: Beds, birds and getting dirty
          A simple dude trying to grow veg. http://haywayne.blogspot.com/

          BLOG UPDATED! http://haywayne.blogspot.com/2012/01...ar-demand.html 30/01/2012

          Practise makes us a little better, it doesn't make us perfect.


          What would Vedder do?

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          • #6
            Originally posted by taff View Post
            Two Sheds has, wine bottles.
            you beat me to it! wine bottle edging

            Originally posted by piskieinboots View Post
            Plastic drink bottles - would they work?
            No, because they tend to disintegrate after a year or two in the sun.
            Last edited by Two_Sheds; 06-04-2010, 07:15 PM.
            All gardeners know better than other gardeners." -- Chinese Proverb.

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            • #7
              or
              Composite Timber | Composite Wood | WPC Timber | Plastic Wood - Dura Wood From Dura Composites Ltd

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              • #8
                I was talking to the Organic Guru today about this very topic; and he said that new wood that had been tanalised is ok organically; however old scaffold boards were the better option due to them not being treated at all. New tanalised treatments aren't the same as the old ones; and thus not so much a problem.

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                • #9
                  Love, love,love the wine bottle idea but our wine comes in a bag!

                  DH made mine with any old wood. If it needs replacing in a few years it's not the end of the world.

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                  • #10
                    Bit of a coincidence this thread. I've just started collecting wine bottles to edge a new bed I've dug because I remember TS doing it.
                    Granny on the Game in Sheffield

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                    • #11
                      I'd go for some "pre loved" (2nd hand) paving slabs half buried in the ground.

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                      • #12
                        This has a built in slug gaurd
                        Lawn Edging with built-in Slug Guard
                        this i a plastic bed
                        Linkabord - The Revolution in Gardening is Here!

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                        • #13
                          I can recommend the LinkaBord - it's made from recycled plastic, comes in different sizes.
                          Growing in the Garden of England

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                          • #14
                            I'm a Linkabord user as well, excellent product
                            aka
                            Suzie

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                            • #15
                              What's nice about Linkaboard is that you can move it from place to place!
                              Whooops - now what are the dogs getting up to?

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