Wood Stain on vegetable garden - Ask Extension
Hello, my neighbor sprayed their fence that we share with stain and now my small vegetable garden is covered with stain. There are some plants that h...
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Wood Stain on vegetable garden #875676
Asked July 02, 2024, 1:49 PM EDT
Hello, my neighbor sprayed their fence that we share with stain and now my small vegetable garden is covered with stain. There are some plants that have vegetables starting to grow, like my zucchini and yellow squash, one of my pepper plants had a pepper that was ready to pick. What do I need to do? Are all the plants ruined? Can I harvest the vegetables that have not matured yet? What about carrots? Are those safe? Soil damage? Thank you for any information.
Jefferson County Colorado
Expert Response
Hi Patricia -
It appears from the location of your garden that the spray came through fence picket slits - is this correct? I assume that you tried to wash it off, but that the stain had dried and did not come off.
Master Gardeners cannot answer questions about poisons or toxins in the environment. An unfortunately I could not find a ready source of information on this issue, so you'll need to do a bit of sleuthing. If you haven't already, get the product name from your neighbor and investigate the ingredients. There should be product safety information on the company website. It might not discuss this particular issue/question, but there should be an email or phone number to contact the company.
One concern that comes to mind is that leaves that were covered thickly or completely may have problems photosynthesizing which will affect vegetable growth. Consider pruning off heavily coated leaves if it is only a few to give the plants the best chance to continue growing.
Here is a link to the Environmental Protection Agency that may help you decide what to do. https://www.epa.gov/ingredients-used-pesticide-products/overview-wood-preservative-chemicals. You might also consider calling the Colorado Poison Control Center, who might have other ideas for you: https://www.copoisoncenter.org/
Good luck, and thanks for contacting us.
Jeffco Volunteer Diagnostician Annette
It appears from the location of your garden that the spray came through fence picket slits - is this correct? I assume that you tried to wash it off, but that the stain had dried and did not come off.
Master Gardeners cannot answer questions about poisons or toxins in the environment. An unfortunately I could not find a ready source of information on this issue, so you'll need to do a bit of sleuthing. If you haven't already, get the product name from your neighbor and investigate the ingredients. There should be product safety information on the company website. It might not discuss this particular issue/question, but there should be an email or phone number to contact the company.
One concern that comes to mind is that leaves that were covered thickly or completely may have problems photosynthesizing which will affect vegetable growth. Consider pruning off heavily coated leaves if it is only a few to give the plants the best chance to continue growing.
Here is a link to the Environmental Protection Agency that may help you decide what to do. https://www.epa.gov/ingredients-used-pesticide-products/overview-wood-preservative-chemicals. You might also consider calling the Colorado Poison Control Center, who might have other ideas for you: https://www.copoisoncenter.org/
Good luck, and thanks for contacting us.
Jeffco Volunteer Diagnostician Annette
