Raised bed materials besides treated wood

[jewelsJZ]

What would you use to make a raised bed? I've seen lots that are made with treated wood but this has arsenic in it! The area we want to put it on is sloped, but it's the only full sun area on our small, suburban property.

[KJoy]

We made ours out of redwood. It's expensive but should last a long time. One of my gardening books lists concrete blocks, bricks and recycled plastic "wood" as also being safe and durable. Have fun!

[georgia]

We used concrete pavers on a slope with much success I've heard of using untreated wood, old furniture, bricks, stones and cinderblocks, too. Pretty much whatever makes the most economic sense and is most readily available. Have fun!!!!

[ProtoLawyer]

We were able to find untreated wood (not sure what kind) at a local small lumber place.

[luv-my-boys]

You can find untreated wood at some box store home improvement places you just have to ask as its not widely marked. Also options like redwood are doable but expensive. My il's had some raised beds made out of cylinder blocks cemented with nicer stone on the outside for the facade. I use old wine barrels cut in half for container gardens.

[Erinz]

Ours are made out of cedar because that is what we found at the time for cheap. Visit whatever smaller lumber yards you have around you and ask what they have for "ugly" wood with tons of flaws and warps. That is what we made work and I love it. I'm a garden blog whore and I can't stand to see it when people used treated wood... gives me the willies.

Also old wood barns, old fences, all that makes for great beds. Does anyone you know have anything that needs to be cleaned up? My potato bed is made from reclaimed lumber. If your local dump is less of a fill and more of a reclaim station there may be options for cheap there too. Also, big contractors in your area? Call them up and ask to take old stacks of lumber! Many businesses are going green and will readily give stuff away instead of paying for disposal.

[AlwaysByMySide]

I've got a makeshift one made from cinder blocks, and one using stackable edge-type bricks. They aren't pretty, but they are very sturdy.

[earthnut]

I've used concrete blocks and broken concrete for a slope. If I were to use wood, I'd go with logs or wide planks. On the flat I prefer no walls at all.

[MidnightCommando]

I used concrete blocks too and love them. You can try to find them free/recycled on craigslist but I couldn't so I paid around $1 each at Lowe's. They are very sturdy and I laid them so the holes ran top to bottom. I filled the holes in with dirt and makes nice little containers for herbs, nasturtiums, and whatever else I feel like throwing in there. As an added bonus, they re-radiate heat at night which is nice here since ever summer nights are pretty cool.

[Owen'nZoe]

Mine are made out of cedar, but in the past I've just double-dug and mounded the beds - so there was no building material used. I actually preferred the unedged beds from a maintenance/planting perspective, but DH prefers the look of boxes.

My mounded beds were on a hill with about a 45 degree angle, too. I didn't have any problem with errosion, as long as I kept the gardens well planted (including cover crops when I wasn't actively growing crops).