Making a raised bed
james burke
Posts: 2
Hi,
Am new to the site, and found it after starting to get an interest in gardening over the last year or so.
I thought it would be fun to grow vegetables, partially for the health and financial benefits, but also as a fun activity to do with my two little boys.
I have cleared an area of the garden that is perfect for putting in a couple of raised beds, but prior to buying the beds, I have realised that as I have a number of internal (house) doors that are unused and unwanted, that I can extend the project with these and actually build the beds out of them with the boys help.
Are there any restrictions / guidelines around the type of wood one can use? Should wood for the raised beds be untreated for example?
Many thanks in advance for any help
Posts
Doors will make very deep beds unless you're able to cut them down. A raised bed for veg doesn't need to be more than about 9" deep.
Hi,
I was planning on cutting them down, keeping the length (approx 1.8m) but only having them 20 cm high.
It was more the wood and the treatments for internal doors I was concerned about
Thanks though
Internal doors are probably not suitable for outside, as they won't last more than a season or two. How old are they? Is there any possibility they were painted with lead paint? The more modern internal doors are nothing more than a bit of thin plywood with cardboard structure inside. That type would last you about a month outdoors.
I highly recommend concrete blocks. They work out cheaper than a board of comparable size, you don't have to worry about it rotting, and they are easy to move around as your garden changes and grows. They are pretty ugly, and they offer plenty of places for slugs to hang out, but overall I'm pleased with them. And I'll have them forever.. I can even take them with me if I move!
Hi James,
I just built a veg bed out of 7x2 untreated sawn carcassing. Its 8x5 feet and 14" deep as i made it out of two 'stories' of the 7x2, but you could of course just to do it one story high. Total cost (excl soil) about £60 delivered from local timber merchant.
I spent ages looking online about treated/untreated wood. I dont think there is a definitive answer but the consensus seemed to be that the modern method of treating wood is 'probably ok'.
A colleague eventually showed me this which i have since used.
http://www.harrodhorticultural.com/eco-wood-treatment-pid8674.html
As Blue Onion says though, id steer clear of anything thats been painted/varnished etc, its not worth taking a chance.