Raised Veg Beds

[walshie]

'Er indoors has tasked me with making her some raised veg beds. I was going to use gravel boards.Some of the kits you see to buy use tanalised wood, but some places say tanalised wood is bad and others say it's fine.

Obviously the wood would need to be treated in some way, but what's best to use? Before anyone says it, I know hardwood boards would last a long time without being treated but they are a fortune. 

Cheers. 

[TIGHTCHOKE]

How many do you want and what dimensions and the most important question, can you collect from Peterborough?

[Yellow Bear]

Tanalized fencing rails and line with polythene to just beyond ground level and weed control mat at bottom.

[GingerCat]

I made mine by using corrugated roof sheeting cut down with an angle grinder. 

The eight sheets were 8 or 10 quid each from the steel place that's local and the cutting disc cost a fiver. 

I cut each sheet in half and made a raised bed from 2. Each  bed is 1.8 metres wide and long and nearly 3 feet high. They are a little high really and the problem was soil so I used next doors horse manure and my compost heap (it's big) with a few bags of compost on top to sow into. I've topped them up the last few year's but this year won't need to. 

You could do the same but with a lower bed and use the sheet steel also instead of wood. It won't rot and is very easy to do. I worked it out as cheaper than wood. Mine are 3 years old, maybe 4 and look like new still, they also make a perfect backstop for my airgun which at 30 metres only just dent them slightly with no danger of poking holes in it. 

're the tanalised wood- the process involves numerous chemicals, arsnic is just one, that may leach out into your veg. You could line the back with thick plastic to help prevent this or protect the wood but it's a bit of a faff. 

Edited January 4, 2019 by GingerCat

[snow white]

Tanalizied will be fine mine have been down 10 years

[walshie]

17 minutes ago, TIGHTCHOKE said:

How many do you want and what dimensions and the most important question, can you collect from Peterborough?

You;re about as far away from me as you can be and still be on the mainland. Kind offer though. Thanks. 

[TIGHTCHOKE]

No worries, always happy to offer some help.

[terence]

scaffolding boards

 

[The gouse]

Crossing Railway sleepers are the best if I’m closer than TC you can come and get what you require Nantwich mate. 

Will the chip shop be happy installing all that above them. 😂 

[mellors]

6ft gravel boards  Lot cheaper and won't rot at all. Get hold of some aluminium bar 22mm to hold them. Plenty of mushroom compost and you'll be ready for spring. Keep her happy for years does mine. 

[JDog]

Don't forget to put plenty of void material like crushed bricks or large dimension gravel in the base to aid drainage. 

[Ricko]

Scaffolding boards rot over time.

6' x 1' concrete gravel boards, a bit ugly but will last.

[haynes]

Tanalised timber is fine now. It used to have cyanide or something equally nasty. Now it doesnt but it wont last as long either.

[Dougy]

I have used 4x4 posts, decking boards and recently knocking up some spud planters out of large galvanised ducting cut into 2ft lengths. 

[Nuke]

I use non treated, painted on the outside, wood but have put Platon subfloor plastic sheets between the soil and boards to make sure they don't rot. I also have some beds made from tanalized boards and I use plastic there as well.

/Markus

[Scully]

Most folk I know use railway sleeper; they'll outlast anyone on here! 

[walshie]

So what everyone's saying is it's totally impossible and not to give it another thought? I'll tell her now. 

Seriously though, thanks for the replies, the offers and the ideas. Given me something to think about. Ta. 

[Walker570]

Walshie I put a raised flower bed along one side of my garden and used half round 12ft tanalised rails screwed to 4 inch round tanalised posts.  Had a fantastic show for many years until some rot set in and now replaced with natural stone.  Tanalised will be fine but do suggest a liner but with drainage holes in the bottom. Lay the liner over some well broken brick rubble.

A good layer of farmyard manure in the bottom followed as suggested compost and I mix it with a 50/50 top soil.   You will need to top up each year as it settles.  I think they are a great idea, keeps the garden tidy and easy to maintain.     Railway sleepers make a good job, drilled from the side and some rebar driven through to hold them in place. Stack as high as you wish.

My neighbour as some that we put in as a hah hah between his lawn and my orchard and they are still as good as new 22yrs later.

[Scully]

The only failing with tantalised wood is that the process has been diluted somewhat. It would seem the major ingredients which preserve wood ( such as arsenic ?) are removed, rendering the preserving process short term. A farmer mate won’t even entertain tantalised wood nowadays and uses railway sleepers or steel for his gate posts. The pressure treatment involved in tantalising fence posts nowadays doesn’t even get to the core. 

I wonder how larch would fare? 

[Clodhopper]

2 minutes ago, Scully said:

The only failing with tantalised wood is that the process has been diluted somewhat. It would seem the major ingredients which preserve wood ( such as arsenic ?) are removed, rendering the preserving process short term. A farmer mate won’t even entertain tantalised wood nowadays and uses railway sleepers or steel for his gate posts. The pressure treatment involved in tantalising fence posts nowadays doesn’t even get to the core. 

I wonder how larch would fare? 

I think the nasties used were Copper, Chrome and Arsenic. Very good at killing living things that deteriorated wood. And probably Humans too.

[timmytree]

I built some for a friend a few years ago using 2x2 concrete slabs, 2 wide and 3 long. I made a wooden rail that slotted over the slabs to hold them firm then varnished it. I laid chipping between the raised beds.

[Dougy]

2 hours ago, Scully said:

Most folk I know use railway sleeper; they'll outlast anyone on here! 

At one time you could pick them up for a tenner, now fetching 40+ for the heavy's , and classed as hazard waste.  I had a load dropped off from a mate who worked on the rail. 

[BaconBoy]

Tanalith used to have copper oxide,chromium pentoxide and arsenic in it (I think🤔)

I think all the 'good stuff' has been substituted with 'safer chemicals' now.

[figgy]

I used railway sleepers the real ones not the cack sold in garden centres.

Two high on edge is about right unless your going to grow long root veg. Normal carrots parsnips are ok though. I put around 18" of compost in mine with broken up kingspan type foam in the bottom over visqueen that I pulled around six or seven Inches up the sides to act as a water retainer. You can start off with one high and add more later, I like a bit higher as I find it easier and more pleasurable on the back to use, wife don't do digging with border fork she only uses hand tools.

Since moved and now my wife just uses half barrel planters to grow her stuff in. I may at some point make her another.

Don't make your beds wider than four feet as it's a struggle to reach the middle otherwise from each side. My wife had a short scaffold board she would walk along ours to pick her salad and vegetables.

Edited January 5, 2019 by figgy

[old man]

15 hours ago, walshie said:

'Er indoors has tasked me with making her some raised veg beds. I was going to use gravel boards.Some of the kits you see to buy use tanalised wood, but some places say tanalised wood is bad and others say it's fine.

Obviously the wood would need to be treated in some way, but what's best to use? Before anyone says it, I know hardwood boards would last a long time without being treated but they are a fortune. 

Cheers. 

Don't waste your time mate. Much better to buy frozen from Iceland?