Garden Boxes

After much hemming and hawing and looking through all my options I decided my best bet for ridding myself of my gopher problem once and for all was to just let them be.  Any solution I looked into seemed temporary and I didn't want to go to a bunch of work just to have the gophers pop back up and ruin it all again.  So I talked my husband into the idea that we needed to have garden boxes.  Above ground gardening seems to be all the rage these days, and I am always one for hopping on the bandwagon.  Plus, I could line the bottom of my boxes with some sort of barrier to prevent the gophers from getting into my plants.  It seemed like a win-win.  A win that is, until I looked at the price of garden boxes.  Ooof!  There was no way I could justify spending $100+ dollars on a 4x4 box (sometimes even smaller).  Sure, they were pretty and classy and made of cedar, but sadly, they just weren't for a poor teacher like me.  If you're a baller, or are just planning on doing one or two boxes, premade raised garden box kits might be a great option.  This one from Sears below was the best deal I've found so far.  If there is something else out there that you know about, I'd love to hear it. 

(sears.com $142 for a 4x6)

Since I really had no idea where to start with making raised garden beds, I decided to troll the Internet for some information about making garden boxes i.e. ideal sizes, treated wood vs. non-treated wood, longevity, etc.  Here's what I found out:

Size:

If you are making your own, the size of your garden box is entirely up to you.  You can adjust it to your own needs and to to fit whatever space you have available.  One measurement to take into consideration is the width of your boxes.  Although it might be tempting to get into the "bigger is better" mindset, you want to remember that you should be able to comfortably reach all of the plants within the box.  For that reason, most sites suggested not exceeding 4' in width.  That way, you can easily and comfortably access all your veggies for pruning, weeding, and picking from both sides of the box.  Second, you want to make sure that you make your boxes sufficiently deep.  Your plants need to have enough soil to form a nice, deep root system.  While there are slight variations to the depth, 12" seems to be generally accepted as the best height to provide enough space for most vegetable plants.  Of course, you can always go deeper, but that also increases the cost of wood and soil needed to fill the boxes.   

Pressure-treated wood vs. Au natural wood:

This seems to be a rather touchy topic depending on who you talk to.  There are many different opinions out there.  Here's the summary of what I gathered.  If you are going for all-natural organic farming then you need to go the non-treated route.  You can buy straight pine (the least expensive option) and take your chances with rotting, or shell out more upfront for rot-resistant woods like cedar and redwood, and have your boxes around longer.  If you are interested in something even more long-term (and less expensive) than cedar, you can use pressure-treated wood.  Pressure-treated wood is wood that has been injected with chemical preservatives that decrease rot and insect infestation.  Although ACQ treated wood today is far better than the CCA of 20 years ago (see article here), there are still concerns with the chemicals leaching into the soil and being absorbed by your plants.  Tests have shown that the amount that plants absorb is so low it is virtually undetectable - but there still is absorption.  The choice is entirely up to you.  As for me, I went with the pressure-treated wood.  I wanted something that would stand the test of time and still be affordable.  And as one poster said in a forum I read on the topic, "I'd rather take my chances with pressure-treated wood than continue to eat veggies which have been doused with chemicals from day one."  On that, I wholeheartedly agree.  So I think whether you are using treated or non-treated wood, growing your own veggies is instantly a better way to go.       

Longevity:  

Untreated pine: 2-3 years (sometimes more)

Untreated cedar or redwood: 15-25 years

Treated wood: 40+ years

(source here)

The life of your garden boxes, no matter what type of wood you get, can be extended a couple of different ways.  Trying oiling the boxes with linseed oil, line the inside of your box with plastic to keep the wet soil from coming in contact with your wood (this is what I do and it also helps prevent chemicals from leaching into your soil if you are using PT wood), or use a regular wood stain or sealant. 

Alternative materials:

I haven't explored much into using alternative materials as garden beds, wood ones seemed to be the easiest and most  cost-effective route for me, but if you are interested in seeing what your other options are, here is an article that gives a couple ideas about how to recycle old items around the house into raised beds.  Have you ever made any garden beds out of something unique?