Knowledgebase
raised beds material #927942
Asked April 09, 2026, 4:03 PM EDT
Oakland County Michigan
Expert Response
Thank you for contacting Ask Extension. I am not sure if you are asking for raised flower beds or raised vegetable gardens, so I am going to deal with both scenarios. If the bed will be used for non-eating plants, then I say go for it. If the raised bed will be used for vegetables, then we suggest not to. Depending on the age of the wood, it could have been treated with CCA, which is chromated copper arsenate. CCA was outlawed in 2004, so if it is younger than that, you will not have any arsenic. But the wood can leach out the chemicals and process chemicals that were used to treat the wood into the soil where your veggies are at. So we recommend not to use treated wood.
I have included several publications for your reference:
https://hgic.clemson.edu/factsheet/treated-wood-in-the-landscape/
https://extension.oregonstate.edu/ask-extension/featured/raised-bed-lumber-pressure-treated-safe
