Planting My First Garden

[thebayratt]

Originally Posted by shilala

I was using those "pressure treated landscape timbers" you see at lowe's and walmart. They only last a few years, they're really worthless.

Thats what I used to get started out to make sure I really wanted a garden.
The reason they are worthless is that they are whats called "flash treated". They aren't fully treated all the way through. Thats why this year I went with a treaded 2x8" for a new raised bed. I could have used a 2x6, but a 2x8 gave me a little more room to add any more soil if needed.

Once they(timbers) rot away from the current bed, I will use some treated 2x6 or 2x8. Then I will use and oil based stain to seal them even more. I will do this all in the fall once all the plants are gone n dead.
Treated lumber is not to be in direct contact with the ground, thats why I am going to stain them to protect them even more.

I wouldn't use the ties, there are too many chemicals I wouldn't want in my plants. Creosote to name a few is distilled from crude coke oven tar, and is mainly composed of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons... don't sound to nice to be in the soil of my plants.