**Please Help** How to treat raised beds for edibles???

Gareth Brown 915

Hi

I have come across some untreated timbers that I am going to use to make a raised bed in my garden. I am going to line them with woven polypropelene but would like to know if anyone knows what I am best to treat the wood with? I have asked several people at nurseries and garden centres and they say a water based Ronseal/Cuprinol type thing is safe. But non of the people I have spoken to seemed to be 100% sure. 

Can an anyone help me? 

Thanks in advance 

GB

Obelixx

My first raised beds were made 20 or so years ago using planed planks painted with Cuprinol - 2 coats.  Expensive.   It lasted a few years but we ended up gradually replacing them with roofing beams as they rotted.   I now prefer to use ordinary cooking grade olive oil (not extra virgin) shaken up with a  few drops of lemon juice.   Prop up the wood, brush on the oil and leave to soak in 24 hours.   Do a second coat if the surface is rough as this will give extra water protection.  Make sure you oil any freshly sawn ends after cutting to size.

We also had retaining walls made from railway sleepers to give us a level surface for our veggie plot and we lined those with black plastic sheeting.  They were ex- rail so treated but the plastic stopped nasties leaching into the soil and prevented moisture from the soil rotting the wood from the inside.

Gareth Brown 915

Thanks Obelixx 
Thanks for that, I have also heard Lineseed oil is good? Any experience on that one? 

Gareth Brown 915

Anyone have any experience with this stuff???

Obelixx

Linseed oil is thick and sticky and leaves a residue.  The olive oil can often be found in 5 litre cans in supermarkets and discount stores and is cheap and leaves no residue.  Any excess can be wiped off with a cloth and won't be sticky once it's all soaked in properly.

Gareth Brown 915

Ah right ok thanks. And how much lemon juice per, say, each litre? And this has been successful for you? How long have yours lasted? 
Thanks again

Obelixx

A few drops to 1/4 lemon per litre.  We're in anew - to us - garden here and so far I've done it on the garden table cos I can't find teak oil here and it's still fine from last year's application.  We've done it on raised bed boards that have been down for just over a year now and I've done it to the wooden bird table.   

I use it on indoor oak furniture too - much better than wax or varnish as it feeds the wood and leaves it impervious to water from spilt drinks or floor washing.

Gareth Brown 915

Thanks I might give it a try

raisingirl

Definitely don't use linseed oil. It attracts rodents. 

We've used similar products to the 'Eco oil' on construction timber but not tried it for things in the garden. It's an expensive option and I doubt would give you any benefit over Obelixx's solution.

Gareth Brown 915

Thanks raisingirl 

Gareth Brown 915

One more thing, do you know how long it take to soak in?