As a gardener, your priority would be to protect your plant from harm. You’ve invested your time and effort into growing such beautiful plants. You can’t let them die due to something as unnecessary as soil erosion. Hence, it would help build garden beds, allowing your plants to stay protected.
Garden beds have become incessantly popular among gardeners as garden beds help them look after their plants. Also, garden beds are easy to maintain, allowing gardeners not to let soil erosion poison their prized possessions. However, if you want your garden beds to sustain, you must get the right wood type to build them.
The 9 Best Woods for Raised Garden Beds
We have made a list of the best wood types you can use to build your garden beds to protect your plants better.
Cedar
Cedar is considered one of the best wood types to build your garden bed from. This piece of wood offers plenty of strength, preventing your garden beds from breaking into pieces. Using this wood type will help protect your plants from soil erosion and insects for a long time.
Also, cedarwood is highly rot-resistant, so that this wood won’t rot away with time. Another excellent quality about cedar is that it’s water-resistant. The more water-resistant your garden bed is, the better it’ll protect your plants as water won’t spoil the garden beds. Water resistance is ideal for garden beds, primarily to protect outdoor plants.
Redwood
Redwood is another wood type commonly used to make garden beds. If you want a sturdy garden bed and some color, using redwood will be perfect. It comes in dark red with hues of brown, making your garden bed look as aesthetic as ever.
As a gardener, you would love your garden to pop with color and nature, so it’s only fair to want garden beds that blend well with the entire garden. Also, redwood has practical qualities that will benefit you and your plants. The durability and sturdiness of this wood type significantly contribute to its popularity.
Juniper
If you’re on a budget and want to invest in a wood type that doesn’t add a dent to your wallet, juniper should be your go-to. Unlike other wood types, juniper isn’t that expensive, making it fall right under your budget.
Besides that, juniper has a rustic finish, so it’ll serve you well if that’s what you’re looking for. The most convenient part about using a juniper to make your garden bed is you won’t have to use excessive chemicals to prevent it from rotting away. Juniper is automatically rot-resistant, preventing you from going crazy over protecting it from rot.
Chestnut
If you look up the best wood types, you’ll undoubtedly find chestnut as one of them. Chestnut is considered one of the most accessible wood types due to its versatility. It does the job of protecting your plants perfectly and adds plenty of physical appeal.
Chestnut is a light brown wood with refined grains and texture. Your garden will automatically look more pleasant with such neutral and soft colors. This piece of wood is excellent, preventing it from breaking. So, if you’re a beginner t woodwork, using chestnut wood will help you throughout.
Yew
You would undoubtedly want a long-lasting wood type to make your garden bed, and yew is precisely that wood. Yew is mainly used for commercial purposes, but it can also be used more unconventionally, such as in building garden beds.
This wood type guarantees durability and longevity; hence, you don’t have to worry so much about its lifecycle. Another excellent quality about yew is that it’s highly rot-resistant. An ideal wood type for a garden bed should always be rot-resistant as it’ll protect the garden bed from damage. Hence, investing in yew will undoubtedly serve you well.
Pine
If you’re a beginner at making garden beds, it’ll help if you choose pine as your wood base. Pine is a straightforward wood type to work with as it’s pretty forgiving. This piece of wood falls under the softwood category, making it a rather convenient woodblock to work with.
Another reason why using pine will benefit you is because it’s inexpensive. So, if you have a limited budget, this wood type won’t require you to bend your finances. Pinewood’s low cost will significantly benefit you (and your wallet) if you make more than one garden bed.
Catalpa
Catalpa may not be as common as other wood types, but it’s highly beneficial and practical. This hardwood is pretty underrated, but you’ll get the best results if you use it to make your garden beds. It’s pretty sturdy, lasts longer than you think, and has an excellent physical appearance.
Most gardeners will suggest using catalpa to build your garden beds as it’s a perfect piece of wood for outdoor purposes, such as protecting plants. Also, catalpa is highly flexible in its dimensions, so you can make whatever shape you want without adding cracks.
Douglas Fir
If you’re on the mission to look for affordable wood types, we’ll ask you to stop as we’ve found the perfect wood type. Douglas fir won’t cost plenty of money, making it convenient for you to invest in. It’s pretty easy to work with, preventing you from being on your toes while using it.
The best part about Douglas fir is that you won’t have to spend crazy hours maintaining it, as this piece of wood is pretty low-maintenance. You’ll be relieved to know that Douglas fir lasts rather long, so you won’t have to look for other options after a while. Ideally, a Douglas fir garden bed should last five to seven years.
Hemlock
Hemlock is one of the best wood types, falling under the hardwood category. It offers plenty of strength, so your garden beds will be rock-solid. This wood type is more potent than other hardwood pieces of wood, so many people invest in it. Its strength is its USP, making it a suitable fit for a garden bed.
The best part about hemlock is that it quickly absorbs stains, giving you more room to experiment with colors. Also, this woodblock has a smooth texture that adds more to its appeal. Overall, hemlock has an excellent finish, allowing you to have a fantastic garden bed for your plants.
