On Wed, 16 Mar 2005 10:28:34 -0700, "Russell D." wrote:

I just got off the phone with a very helpful young man at my local Home
Depot. I was gathering info from him on the prices of redwood, cedar and
composite planking that I want to make grow boxes from. When I mentioned
to him that I was going to make grow boxes he suggested that I use
treated lumber, quickly adding, as if he anticipated my protest, there
is no longer any arsenic used in the treating process and nothing is
used that would be harmful.

I would appreciate any thoughts on this. I'm still a bit hesitant about
using treated lumber for grow boxes for vegetables but it would sure
save a lot of money if I could.

What do you think?

Russell

I would avoid using PT wood anywhere where it may touch food. Working
with PT wood is just plain nasty (the dust is not good to breath, the
wood crumbles, and it twists and turns as it slowly dries, etc). I'm
not totally against PT wood, as I built two trellises, a park bench,
and mailbox post from it.

For vegetables a good choice is cypress. You could use white oak,
cedar, redwood, teak whichever is lowest price. These are all good
outdoor woods. Before filling these with soil, line them with
galvanized metal, aluminum, copper, plastic, tile, or plastic. The
boxes should be able to drain quickly without having "wet feet" for
extended periods.