- Protect wooden raised bed against rot
- What is better for the raised bed: pond liner or dimpled liner?
So that the wooden raised bed does not rot and become rotten after just two winters, you should protect it from moisture. The most important thing is to separate the wood and the bed filling - otherwise the moisture from the filling will penetrate the wood and cause the rotting process. For this reason, covering the bed with a waterproof film is immensely important. But which film is best?
Pond liner is often used for raised beds
Protect wooden raised bed against rot
Not only does the film provide good protection against rotting, but also a protective coat of non-toxic paint or linseed oil.
Wood protection with foil
The pond or dimpled liner is stapled or nailed to the frame of the raised bed from the inside. This will prevent the damp soil from coming into direct contact with the wood. When choosing the foil, make sure that you don't necessarily choose the cheapest foil. Instead, look for one without toxic ingredients and, most importantly, avoid plasticizers. You should also place the corner posts of the raised bed on stones so that they have no contact with the ground. This also allows the water to run off better and the wood to last longer.
glazes and protective coatings
You can paint the outside of the raised bed with an environmentally friendly stain or wood preservative paint to protect it from rot and fungal attack. Such products come in both colorless and many shades. Of course, poisonous colors have no place in a kitchen garden.
What is better for the raised bed: pond liner or dimpled liner?
Pond liner is a waterproof liner typically used to line a man-made garden pond. Dimpled foil, in turn, is also referred to as drainage foil. It has nubs on one side and is attached to the inside of the bed with the nubbed side facing outwards (i.e. in the direction of the wood). Due to its structuring, the film allows for additional drainage by draining off excess water immediately. Basically, however, this is completely unnecessary, at least if the bed is in contact with the ground and has a thick drainage layer. A good, thin pond liner is cheaper than special dimpled liner and serves the same purpose.
tips
It is much more important that you choose a film without toxins. PVC pond liners often contain harmful plasticizers and should therefore not be used. So-called EPDM foils (rubber foils) are non-toxic and do not emit any harmful substances.