Gardening and Horticulture - pressure treated wood

I know that the EPA is taking pressure treated wood off the market, but does anyone know how long it takes before all the chemicals leach out and the ground around p.t. wood is safe to grow food in?

Thanks, W

Hello woolly

This is purely anecdotal, but the amount of chemicals leaching from properly treated wood (ie: incised, pressure treated wood v.s dipped) would seem to be minimal after the chemicals on the surface have weathered for a season. The scientific community (and especailly the health community) might have differing opinions, but until I see the reports, I will be comfortable using PT wood for walls and boxes - even for veggie gardens. You could just keep the veggies planted a foot or so inside if you are really concerned about leachate or if you are uncomfortable with that, you can use a wood that has natural oils in it that repel insects and resist rot such as cedar, but be prepared for the extra costs.

(This is, of course, just my opinion) :o

Howie

I just read an article on this recently, can't remember where, that basicly backs up howie. It said the amount of arsenic in fruits and vegetables was virtually the same as would be expected from naturally occuring amounts.

They also did not compare the amount of leachate from PT wood to the amount of arsenic you used to get when it was used for a pesticide on apples. Was in the order of 1000x more..
IIRC