[lochnesslass]

aquired this , its just under 5 m long and only about 8''wide.
was going to use it for my peas in the site shown in the other pic would this be the best use of it? and suitable.
the site is west ish facing and get sun in the morning till about noon at the moment and not much longer in summer.
it can be windy here so i was going to tac some poly to the fence and drape it to protect them, would this be needed?
ooh also was going to line the thing but not sure whether to and also what with, the wwod is not pressure treated.

[Kleftiwallah]

There isn't a helicopter rotor blade (B.I.M. blade) left in there is there ? ? ?   :blink:  Cheers,     Tony

[lochnesslass]

lol no sorry, it was stainless steel poles for hand rails!

[Spana]

Looking at it i think the question to ask you first is where is the soil coming from to fill it and if its going to stand on soil would you gain much.

But if it were mine i would be looking to use it too and if it had nice clean soft  soil/compost right to the top i would go with carrots and French beans.  The carrots because i cant grow show winning carrots in my soil and French beans because my back wont let me bend low enough to pick them when grown in the ground. Might also be good for strawberries :happy:

[lochnesslass]

it will be sitting on stones along the base of the fence in the pic.
will be filling it with compost/soil mix or just compost.

[Yorkie]

I agree with the other suggestions - would be great for strawbs and carrots, or salads, or beans, or ... probably not spuds, onions or leeks though (just for reasons of maximising crop from space).

I'd try to treat the wood first or it will rot within a year or two.

I'm not sure whether it's worth also lining it - if you use polythene it will help to protect the timbers but you run the risk of poor drainage unless you create lots of holes - which will rot the wood at the bottom.  If you use woven weed fabric, the timbers are still in contact with moisture.

[Spana]

it will be sitting on stones along the base of the fence in the pic.
will be filling it with compost/soil mix or just compost.

Oh i see i've just enlarged the pic and can see now that its block paving, i thought it was nice light brown soil in the small pic and without my glasses, silly me.

[lochnesslass]

what would be best to treat the wood with, is creasote (sp?) ok?
i think i will also line the base with the black stuff, breathable and porous and the sides with plastic.

[joyfull]

not creosote as this is banned from general use (only professionals can use it with a license and for previously treated material). Why not use something like ronseal?

[grendel]

Many years ago I worked for a company that did aluminium double glazing, and all the extrusions used to come from germany in crates just like that, the company had a stack out in the yard, about 50m long and 3-4m high and several boxes deep, when I needed some timber I asked if I could take some, and was told the more I took the better, my brother in law had a flat bed lorry, so we went and filled it up, he had half and boarded his loft out, with my half I built a 3m x 2m shed, fitted it out with shelves and benches.
I had that for around 15 years, until I moved out, and my dad had a garage built there.
I would get some preservative on the wood, line it with polythene pond liner or damp membrane with holes that line up with largish holes drilled through the bottom of the wood for drainage, then use it for whatever you want to plant.
Grendel

[goodtogrow]

Would also stand it on bricks, or something, to keep it off the paving.  Whatever you treat it with or line it with damp will lie underneath if it's on the paving.  Lost too many wooden planters that way.

[Trillium]

Just thinking the same thing myself, goodtogrow. Not only will it help drainage, but it will also discourage the millions of pill bugs that would gather there if left on the ground.

I also would line it with poly and direct drill drainage holes. Then you could always put some silicone caulk around the holes so the poly sticks to the wood and water will just go straight out the holes. Just be sure not to block the holes with the caulk. 

[lochnesslass]

good thinking on raising it on bricks. it will be sitting on the stones at the base of the fence so not on the brickets but raising it will help drainage and it rotting.
what is silicone caulk? just silicone that you' use round a bath to seall it?

[Trillium]

You could use that, or it also comes in the larger tubes used to caulk around windows, etc.

A smaller bathroom sized tube might be a better size for this purpose and easier to control the outcoming flow.

[goodtogrow]

Good point about 'pill bugs', Trillium.  Are they what we would call wood lice?

Just thinking about the cost of wood treatments, the cheap water-based fence treatments you find in B&Q would be good for the bottom, inside and out, as well as the outsides.  I think they're made with polymers (plastics?) to make the wood waterproof, whereas the solvent-based more expensive ones rely on chemicals to kill rotting organisms - I think.

Whatever you use, am sure it's a good idea to make sure the timber is bone dry before applying, so that the treatment penetrates deeply.

Looks like you've got an interesting project - good luck with it.

Tom