I really appreciate the fact that you dare to question the myths out there. I have found that it really pays to do your own research. One person recently said, "I don't just watch videos, I also read"...or something to that effect. Thank you for sharing. Loved the "song" at the end.
That's what I try and do. I never know what's real these days. There is so much purposeful misinformation, disinformation and outright fear, we owe it all to ourselves to research independently. That being said, don't just take my word for it. I'm just some guy with an opinion. If you feel you can defend your position in an argument and not back down, you probably have put in the research. Glad you enjoyed the Sounds of Dale 😂
Absolutely great info. I don't know what you do for a living, but you would be an amazing teacher or journalist. Your videos are always so clear, concise and logically organized.
Really? Interesting choice. Is this one of those "militant" subjects that gets under your skin? I am definitely tired of explaining myself in comments, so I made this video so I can reference it instead and save time in the long run 😅
@@TheMillennialGardener I think im most intrigued with your no-nonsense practicality while also remaining deferential to folks' particular sentiments. Tricky line to walk. For example, you mention that a good reason not to use miracle-gro is that it's a monsanto product which many people despise even though clearly you don't. I'm hearing a nod to the situation without any kind of character judgement which is so rare in any place these days and practically nonexistent on the internet. That's sincerity. Respect. I'm not militant anything, spent 2 tours being militant and I'm super over militancy. I believe in a time and place for all things; I appreciated your take and I expect you're going to get much more drama than esteem in response to this video, I wanted to reach out and counter it with my own praise for you and what you're doing.
Thanks for being brave enough to cover this topic. When I bought my treated boards the big box employee warned me not to use it for gardening. I use copper-treated pressure treated pine in my raised beds. I read independent research on the topic. Even the old nastier arsenic boards had very little soil migration and even less plant absorption. I have four beds that are over 16 years old and just this year I had to replace one end board and two side boards. A great community garden near me used untreated boards and their 30+beds fell apart quickly and had to be rebuilt this year. This time, they went with copper-pressure treated. I do compost topping each year, but I will often give new plants a helping hand with Jack's soluble 20-20-20. And I always use diluted synthetic for indoor seedlings starts until they are transplanted.
finally some common sense on this stuff, esp. the fertilizer issue. Now I have a source to refer people to, when I hear comments about "horrible" non-organic fertilizer. Thanks! (and the outtake...fabulous...great to see Dale leading his pack in howling!)
Cows prefer grass that hasn't had synthetic fertilizers used. Maybe they're onto something? Decades ago I read of an experiment where cows were free to choose between two adjacent plots, and they unanimously fed from the plot that was free of use of synthetic fertilizers.
I tend to use natural and synthetic fertilizers in combination . I too live in the rainy southeast and manures , compost , blood and bonemeal and fish fertilizer are great but sometimes not quite enough in rainy summers . You really get the best of both worlds with a combination . Miracle Gro is a great product and I noticed this spring they add beneficial bacteria to their newest tomato food . It never hurts to add more bacteria to the existing bacteria in the soil as it helps to convert ammonia to nitrite then to nitrate etc . I completely agree that the plants themselves are the best indicator of toxicity in the soil . If they are healthy then that’s what matters . It’s all chemical processes in the soil to break down all nutrients in the soil to a form plants can use . Great video !
We got 102.40 inches of rain in 2018 and over 90 inches of rain last year where I live. Like you said, I just can't do it purely organically and get good yields because it's too wet. Too much soil washout, too much rapid drainage from the sandy base soil. The solubles are imperative for yields. Other than the synthetic fertilizers, I am almost purely natural/organic. Considering I feed my tomatoes once every 2 weeks, and each tomato plant gets about 1/4 of a watering can's worth of water at a concentration of 1T/gal, that means each tomato plant gets 0.375 tablespoons of Miracle Gro every 2 weeks, or 0.75 tablespoons a month. You can't tell me there is a difference between a plant that is 100% organic or 100% organic sans 0.75 tablespoons of Miracle Gro a month in terms of health. Now YIELDS, on the other hand, are a huge difference. For a 3/4 tablespoon a month supplement, I'm getting triple the yields. The folks that think those concentrations are going to harm them aren't thinking it through logically.
Excellently explained my friend, I could not have put it any better. I'm hoping a few doses of that stuff will help my plants and trees recover a bit quicker. Keep up the good vids Sir.
Here's a bit of good news: I have some new buds on my Smith fig tree starting to open. The others aren't doing much, but I see a few previously black buds appearing to turn green and swell. We'll be behind, but all hope isn't lost.
@@TheMillennialGardener That is good news indeed! I am seeing some slow recovery from the in ground stuff....not a lot....but something. Not giving up on them. :)
I do think synthetic fertilizers shouldn't be abused due to the salt issue, however. That being said, I don't think they're inherently problematic when used reasonably. Thanks for watching!
I think thats true for the fertilizers he mentioned but it's not true when you have a thriving soil food web. In that system, the microbiology in the soil and their relationship with root zone of the plant is how they absorb nutrients naturally.
I'll use miracle grow in my potted plants because I can wash the salts out if necessary (just by extra irrigation). I prefer to use compost / wood mulch and if needed some type of fish blend to add nitrogen for my in-ground plants. I think I'd rather just let the soil biology do it's thing for in ground plants (tbh I'd rather not have to amend at all), but my potted plants are in a soil-less mix... I do agree that the miracle-grow chemical fertilizers (especially those high nitrogen ones) make things grow insanely vigorously. Reminds me that I need to go feed my figs, they're waking up :)
I think that is an excellent, sensible approach. I haven't had time yet, but I want to convert my entire garden to drip irrigation via my rain barrels. I just bought a 44 lb bag of micronized azomite. What I would like to do is use less of the MiracleGro for my beds and switch more to an azomite+fish emulsion cocktail, but my potted figs will continue to get MiracleGro in heavy doses. I will likely still spot treat my tomatoes, cucumbers and peppers with Miracle Gro, though, because they yield too heavily when you give them synthetics. It's worth it because it literally doubles your harvest, in my opinion. The greens don't need it, though.
Only tidbit I have to add is that in commercial farming, salinization of the soil and dead zone in the sea are a real issue when it come to synthetic fertilizer. For people who are concerned what fertilizer are safe to use, the WSDA website have a "Fertilizer Product Database" which list all the retail fertilizer products with a breakdown for the amount of heavy metals found in each. Some products have higher level of heavy metal than what is deemed safe, especially if you consider European levels. But then again, you have to look at the application method and how much of it actually accumulates over time in the soil and how much gets into the plants and into the body, so it gets complicated. There are some studies of how much heavy metal the plants actually pick up despite the higher amount found in the soil, and it tend to be a lower amount. I have experimented growing with soil plus compost only without any extra fertilizer and gotten amazing result, and I still feel it's the healthiest for the soil biology without the extra salt and potential traces of other harmful chemicals/heavy metal. But at the sametime, I also don't mind using synthetic fertilizer, I'm just careful with the application and not over do it. I use Osmocote because it is synthetic fertilizer, but is slow release so that should alleviate the issues of burning the plants and putting too much salt in the soil too quickly. Mainly I only use it for containers. For raised beds, I just add more compost each year. I also use synthetic fertilizer to prep my straw bales at the beginning of each season, I guess the organic alternative to that are urine and chicken compost.
I think we need to keep things in context. We're talking about using these fertilizers in a backyard garden at concentrations recommended on the package. When I do the math, this equates to each tomato plant getting 0.75 tablespoons of fertilizer a month. That's really nothing. Comparing that to commercial farms that have terrible land management practices in place: monocropping and flood irrigating with massive amounts of fertilizer with tremendous amounts of runoff can't really be compared to what we're doing in our residential yards. What we're doing is harmless. What they're doing has consequences. The problem I have is when folks take the worst examples of bad commercial farming practices and then say the product is bad and you shouldn't use it in your home garden. They're two very different things. Using small amounts of these products as a supplement in very controlled feeding operations is a great way to grow tons more food per square foot, which is actually more environmentally friendly. You're growing more food on less land with no consequences. But this is the recommendation for the heavy feeders. If you can grow light feeders completely organically and not use products, that's great, too.
Thank you so much. People really can confuse you. I live in Orlando Florida. We have Sandy soil and some clay, but it rain ridiculously long especially in summer. I try all natural and fail miserably. No worms and vegetables. lol
@@americancubangardener Wendy, are you also subscribed to David The Good? He's done a lot of gardening in Central FL and has great tips and written a number of books.
@@americancubangardener the one thing I absolutely believe is what he says about hay, straw and manure being poisoned. I experienced it for myself and will never use commercial grades again (manure), or hay or straw.
I've owned my home for 35+ years. In the beginning, cedar lumber and fencing was easily available and long-lasting, here in Central NY (Syracuse area). Not so for a long time, now. My understanding is that cedar lumber is virtually impossible to find east of the Mississippi River. It certainly can't be found, here. I am rebuilding and installing new raised beds (albeit slowly - heart failure) and have opted to use pressure treated lumber. Fear of pressure treated wood was based on there being "arsenic" in it. It had an arsenic element containing compound in it, which is not the same as free arsenic. Nevertheless, that compound is in the past, having been replaced with copper element containing new treatment formulas. Mind you, free copper in your body is toxic too, but the 'PR factor' is better. I have a chemical engineering education and don't fear the mere existence of an element in these compounds. I'll go by the regulatory toxicity data in this use.
Awesome video. I have been doing a lot of research about organic vs synthetic fertilizers but this was by far the most informative and answered every question i had. Im growing over 50 fruit trees in South Florida organically but the sandy soil and my potted citrus hold little nutrients.. i feel more comfortable now introducing the water soluble fertilizers. What is your take on synthetic slow release fertilizers?
I have never used synthetic slow release fertilizers, primarily for three reasons: 1. They don't improve the soil. If you want slow release fertilizers, use organic slow release, because it will also feed the worms, bacteria, fungi, and the rest of the microbiome. That will help your soil get better over time. 2. The organic slow release fertilizers have far more trace micronutrients since they're made of whole animal and plant parts. 3. Slow release synthetics tend to shed the nitrogen very quickly, so initially, they wind up being a very high nitrogen fertilizer. Basically, I don't think they do anything well. If you need synthetics, give them the soluble stuff that they can use immediately. The rest of your time, you should be trying to improve your sandy, low-nutrient soil by adding compost, mulch and organic granulated fertilizer.
Honestly sandy soil is a losing battle, organic fertilizer will bleed out of the soil as fast as anything else, compost does nothing, and mulch doesnt help much, its hell in the form of soil to get it amended and the best thing to do is put liquid fertilizers typically synthetic as anything else is just a waste of time and money.
You're welcome! I'd urge you to quickly check a few sources just so make sure you truly agree with me before proceeding. This is my opinion and I don't want to mislead anyone. Thanks for watching!
This is such a helpful video. Just what I needed. I accidentally bought a pressure treated wood lattice and was worried about growing cucumbers on it because of the myth.
Oh you'll be fine. Remember, if the treatment chemical was somehow harmful to the plant, it would be sickly climbing up the trellis. One gentlemen did a soil test right up against his various pressure treated wood beds on RUclips, and what he found was the concentrations of preservative was within normal ranges of copper for soils, and the amount of concentration increase you can expect is similar to if you were to lean your skin onto a deck railing, or walk across a wooden deck barefoot - which everyone does in the summer. If you're not afraid to rest your elbows on a railing or walk across a wood floor barefoot, this isn't really a concern because remember, if you walk across or lean on treated wood, you're effectively absorbing some of its contents into your body. Of course, none of that matters because if the levels aren't enough to make you sick, it is harmless. Otherwise, you'd be seeing studies of people with decks on their homes contracting diseases.
@@TheMillennialGardener that is so true. Thank you for the in-depth explanation. Your channel has been such a great resource! We enjoy your videos and advice.
Great video. Your correct about both of these myths on the net. It’s amazing how some people will just repeat something they are told as if it’s a undisputed fact. Love your analytical approach to gardening. Big fan of the channel!
Thank you. That being said, I don't anyone to repeat what I'm saying just because I'm saying it, either. At the end of the day, we all owe it to ourselves to do independent research. Synthetic fertilizers aren't inherently harmful, but they also shouldn't be the core of your routine. The core of your routine should be organic fertilizers and soil conditioners, composting, mulching, etc. I use synthetics for my heaviest feeders because I live in sand and it rains here a lot, and I find them necessary for strong yields. What I don't like is folks going around saying they're somehow going to poison your fruit and kill all the earthworms, because the science just isn't there for that nonsense.
How much compost do you add per raised bed? I find compost works well for my plants when they're young, but once my tomatoes, specifically, get going, compost isn't enough. They demand too many nutrients and the raised beds can't hold all the compost they need, so I have to supplement.
You raise some very good points I grow in raised beds, all types 3 x 8 galvanized beds on sale from northern tool $72.99 15.63-in x 8-in x 5.63-in Standard Cored Concrete Block $1.58 I used 28 blocks to build a roughly 3 x 16 bed $45 I found a lumber yard and used untreated cedar 3/4in x 8ft $27 per panel I built beds of different sizes with this cedar I made a choice to stay away from anything pressure treated or chemical laden, I tend to be on the more paranoid side But you make a good point, how much of it actually gets into the soil and the food I think you should run a test, to get actual data, facts and demonstrate this You should setup a 4x4 with pressure treated wood and a control without, grow the same veggies and over the course of a year or 2 measure both the soil and the food. There are plenty of labs out there who would be willing to trade testing for advertising on your channel I think its worth it, you may be the only person with actual data to back this claim if you do In terms of the synthetic ferts, they wont hurt you, they just dont build the soil over time like EWC, azomite compost and fish and seaweed do, I do both sometimes, but choose organic mostly I think you should setup a test to see if there is real leaching both in the soil and food, showing data puts to rest any speculation good work
Building two beds out of 4x4's would cost hundreds of dollars. It would require 9 4x4's per bed at $23 a piece, with prices currently rising, plus delivery. That's totally out of the question. The soil testing does not matter, because the soil concentrations cannot matter by definition. If the plants are healthy, they can't contain enough of a substance to be harmful to a human being. Even if I were to spend $500 for two test beds and even more for testing of the fruits, the information garnered would be irrelevant. Nutrient composition can vary a lot simply based on individual fruits, and it would be impossible to determine if treated wood was truly impacting the results. The worst thing that could happen is a measurable difference in copper content is observable. Then, you'd have a situation where you're showing an impact, but you have no scale to gauge if it even matters. Let's say the treated wood-grown fruit has 50% more copper mineral content than the other. That is effectively meaningless, because we would have no way of gauging how much copper it takes to be problematic. It's one of those situations where we're creating problems that don't exist simply to talk about them. That's how these myths get spread, and I don't want to contribute to fear-based decision-making. At the end of the day, if the plants are healthy, they can't harm you. We don't really need to analyze it past that.
@@TheMillennialGardener I think you misunderstood my first part, The cedar panels I use are $27, they are 8ft x 3/4in x 10in high,,,I was suggesting a very basic 4ft x 4ft x 10in bed,,,,so you would only need 2 pieces for $54 total per bed,,,for the second part, if they look healthy and they ARE uptaking anything undesirable then it must not carry that much weight and be affecting the plant much at all,,,,the topic is still very interesting to me
I use both. Mostly syntetics for macronutrients and I use organics for micronutrients. I don't think there is anything wrong with using syntetics as long as you add organic matter to the soil as well in the form of mulch and compost.
Noticed your avocado tree on your last video.... is that in ground? I am in charlotte and have small trees potted, how are you growing yours? You should do a video on your citrus trees as well!
Yes, my avocado is in ground. I have many videos on my Lila Avocado if you search "avocado" on my channel. Same thing with my citrus. If you search "satsuma" or "citrus" on my channel, you'll get a lot of results. I would post a link to one, but I literally have a dozen+ videos on them and would urge you to check out the ones that interest you.
We have one very large 16’x5’ bed that is made with pressure treated wood. We have 5 beds made of galvanized steel. All of our plants are thriving. We do garden all organically using organic fertilizers when necessary. Btw, love the singing at the end. Dale is so cute! And so is your wife/girlfriend/fiancé???
That's a big bed. Is it hard to reach to the center? I have 4' beds and sometimes I struggle and wish I went 42 inches wide. That's Brittany. She's my fiance. Dale sings much better than we do.
@@TheMillennialGardener Wonderful! Happy for you that you are engaged! We would not have built it 5’ wide if we had thought it through a bit more. 4’ is better for a max width. Yes, I climb through it sometimes!! 😂🤪
thin wire in a circle or square lined with hay or weed paper filled with soil and a few steaks to hold fence,great way to hide stumps and other eye soars in your yard
I use redwood in the front yard and PT in the back. This is 100% for aesthetics and a nod to the fact that should I need to sell my property, my awareness of PT’s suitability will be trumped by the general public (meaning prospective buyer)‘s ignorance. Resell value is a factor when considering the long run financial offset so yeah, it costs more now but it’ll save me a ton in not having to remove it later.
If you're doing it for home value aesthetics, then I would agree with you. I'm not going anywhere anytime soon, and this is purely for gardening in the privacy of my backyard. Are you located in the PNW? Redwood is hard to find on the East Coast.
@@TheMillennialGardener close, I'm in Sacramento. Redwood isn't cheap however California has recently enacted a crazy-restrictive dump policy which effectively means that you're stuck with even the cut ends of PT boards forever or whenever the legislature figures out that they banned PT in all dumps without having any means on hand to deal with the extant material (which also means forever).
@@addammadd that's absurd, and also an unenforceable policy. All that means is that people will start hiding debris in their trash bags, and they'll just start illegally dumping in the woods. Make it impossible for people to dispose of common items and it'll become a littering crisis. Sorry to hear that.
Great video! I am in the process of building a new home and was thinking about building my raised beds using cinder blocks (with today's lumber prices it may be even cheaper :-) ). Do you know if there are any drawbacks (other than cost) of building the beds out of cinder blocks?
I didn't build my beds out of cinder blocks for three reasons: cost, aesthetics and I was concerned they'd fall over on me. The "cost" argument is rapidly disappearing with the insane cost of lumber these days. I think wood beds look better in my setup, but if you can make them look good, "aesthetics" is relative. My main concern would be if the blocks won't hold their shape. I would be concerned that the weight of the soil behind the blocks would topple them or cause them to fall out of line. If you can secure them somehow, then that point is moot, so I can't really say anything truly negative about the idea.
Synthetic fertilizers don't have Mico nutrients so that another thing that needs to be bought and added. It is also most certainly not a sustainable practice. I have found soil life using synthetic to be a fraction of those beds where no dig and organic fertiser and compost is used. Does synthetic work? Yes, every commercial farmer uses it. Does it promote soil health and living soils? No. That's why the world's soils are so depleted, because everything is synthetic and ruining natural cycles and processes. I do agree on the wood though.
Synthetic fertilizers do have micro-nutrients, but they are limited to what the processing plants add to them. The scope of this video was not how to use synthetic fertilizers. It was only to dispel the myth that they are somehow harmful to us. I do not solely use synthetic fertilizers. In fact, I do quite the opposite. The foundation of my fertilizing practices are organic 5-5-5's, bone meal, crab shell meals, compost, mulch and buried kitchen scraps. Synthetic fertilizers make up a very small portion of my regiment, and I only supplement them to my heaviest feeders: figs, citrus, cucurbits and nightshades. But again, that wasn't the scope of this video.
Add tomatoes need 6-8 weeks before planting..I have yet to harden off plants but according to my post question no one seems to bother with following a strict hardening off process...I've already ripped the length of time needed for seedlings and if I can harden off seedlings without taking a week off of work to harden off plants I'll rip that chapter out to.
Have you seen my video on my pop-up greenhouse? Using this method, I don't have to harden off seedlings. Once they germinate, they go into here during the day. I don't use grow lights thanks to this baby. ruclips.net/video/AHYkfvOytmE/видео.html
You need to do your building with wet pressure treated wood before it dries, unless you keep it properly stacked, in bulk, so its own right keeps it straight. Building while PT lumber is wet will force the wood to remain in alignment while drying.
I keep hearing even numbered syntetics like 20-20-20 is bad since phospurus stays in the soil much longer than nitrogen and Potassium. So by using them long term you will get a phospurus buildup that will kill benificial bacteria and worms will not want to be there anymore. Is there truth to this?
If it is working for you and you don't mind the additional cost, then there is no reason to use synthetics. Synthetics are a way to greatly increase yields for a low price. I can't afford to fertilize everything I have in my garden purely organically and get the yields I can get with synthetics. If you can handle that, then that's truly awesome.
Hey MG, Mark here from Charlotte again. I also researched heavily on the use of treated lumber and came to the same conclusion. But on another note I noticed in your garden a number of cold-weather crops like kale, chard, and the like. my question is were these planted last fall? Surely they haven’t gotten that big this year. I’m in a similar zone, just converted my garden to raised beds with weed block between the beds, at 64, I’m getting tired of weeds and less than optimal soil. Thanks
Yes. I planted many of those crops last fall. They make it through the winters here unprotected. You should be able to grow kale, cabbage, carrots, radishes, garlic and spinach in Charlotte all winter. Here on the coast, I can also do chard, dill, parsley, cilantro, beets and onions, but the beets and dill occasionally take a little damage. Lettuces are hit or miss. Romaines don't seem to do great here once we get below 26 degrees or so, but the leaf lettuces do well here all winter.
I listen to 5 different gardening radio shows here in TX.. the only one who half way suggest using synthetic fertilizer also has those companies in his commercials.. but to each his own...
See? This video is an example of why I subscribe to your channel and continue to watch (and to heed your advice). The information is well-researched and provided in a straightforward, nonsensical manner. Two asides: 1) i notice your asparagus is growing; mine has not yet broken through the soil, but then I live in one zone colder than yours and my garden is at the bottom of a small valley; 2) It's just my opinion, I realize, but Dale sings much better than either of you! :)
Thanks. I'm glad you found it helpful. My asparagus was up within 10 days of planting the roots, but my soil here doesn't freeze. It is workable all year, so my soil temps probably "bottom out" around 50. The asparagus would be taller, but it got killed back twice with a hard freeze in March and this last hard freeze on April 3. It still looks good, though. Being a better singer than me or Brittany is not a compliment. The three of us will not be touring the country anytime soon on our vocal talents.
I’ve seen the costs. Fir is great, but I can build 6 beds out of MCA wood 😂 If I only had one or two beds, maybe I would go specialty, but I have too many to make fancy wood reasonable.
I'm 100% onboard. I always soak my tomatoes in fish emulsion when I transplant them. I think I am going to keep doing that throughout the season to see if fish emulsion can help keep disease away with the "good bacteria." If you are using synthetic fertilizers like Miracle Gro, you may want to use a reduced concentration to prevent burns. Maybe 1/4 or 1/2 strength.
@@TheMillennialGardener I have a lot of willow trees around my pond. I think I’m going to start making willow water tea to water my tomatoes to get better root growth from the root ball and add more rooting from the stem hairs with the rooting hormone willows have in the twigs. My big fig is definitely dead from that negative 3 temp. I have a few leaves sprouting from underground around the trunks. I have well over 200 fruit and pecan trees and my Celeste was my favorite tree. I hope my 7 pawpaws make it here in my sandy and very shallow rocky soil. Not good conditions for many trees especially pawpaw. I’ll have to really water them. Luckily they’re a waterhose length from my house.
Hi, I have a very sandy garden in Pinehurst,NC. How often do YOU use the water soluble fertilizers? I have tomatoes, cucumber, peppers,watermelon and pumpkin planted which I know are heavy feeders. Thank you!
I fertilize every other weekend, so every 14 days. My soil is very sandy as well. It's best to fertilize during dry weather since you want the fertilizer to sit in the soil and not "wash out" with rain. You'll want the soluble fertilizer to sit in the soil for 24 hours for the plants to take it up. Therefore, if I see it's going to rain on Day 14, maybe I'll fertilize on Day 12 or Day 15 if those days are forecast dry.
According to treatedwood.com: "Preserve CA - Copper Azole Type C (CA-C) is found readily across the US and Copper Azole Type B (CA-B) in Canada. Please watch our informative videos below to learn more. The CA-C preservative formulation is made of 96.1 % soluble copper (100% recycled) and organic triazole co-biocides; tebuconazole and propiconazole, which help control copper-tolerant fungi. Preserve CA is widely used across the US. The CA-B, copper azole Type B, formulation is very similar, also made of 96.1% 100% recycled, soluble copper and 3.7% tebuconazole. Preserve CA-C has been registered for use in Canada since 2002. Preserve ACQ Alkaline Copper Quaternary (ACQ) used as a wood preservative is being replaced with Preserve CA-C or CA-B, prompted by the demand for quaternary needed in cleaning products due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Both Preserve CA types B and C, are seen as “greener” preservatives and a more sustainable option than previous wood preservatives. Both are also certified by Home Innovation Research Labs for points toward NGBS Green Certification to the ICC 700 National Green Building Standard." Looking at this data, I would prefer Copper Azole over ACQ. Everything at Lowe's that I've seen in MCA (micronized copper azole). I like the fact it is very highly pure copper, which is getting close to the concentrations in approved organic copper fungicides. ACQ sounds like it's being voluntarily phased out. I am not saying ACQ is bad, but I would prefer looking around for MCA/CA. Again, the stuff sold at Lowe's that I've seen in CA, so it should be very easy to find.
Great Video and i totally agree with you....I refer to the fert section.....I dont have raised beds but found it interesting all the same....Makes me laugh when people say they want to grow organic and dont want to use chemicals.....Plants dont differentiate between chemical ferts and organic ferts....they take from the soil what they require......even if there were some dodgy chemicals in the soil...its not what the plant seeks from the soil.....it seeks macro and micro nutrients.......The organic lovers think its healthier to feed their plants animal poo.....their blood and bone ...Hello?....so they are eating plants grown from poo and blood and bone of animals and they they think that is healthier than using chemical ferts !!!! hahahah..........REF the salt build up...you are spot on with in ground....they get flushed away....where it is an issue is in containers and some plants are really prone to probs eg Citrus........I flush my containers big time at the start of spring to wash out salts.......there is argument about not using organic ferts in pots a) there are no microbes in potting mix to help break down the organics and b) if your potting mix breaks down organically it will compact.......so feeding pots with organics makes it difficult for the plant to obtain those nutrients and also encourages compaction......so i feed with so called chemical soluble ferts for my citrus/figs and avos .....feed regular but very weak solution ....so no salt build up and it works a treat..........Organic def seems to go well in ground,.....I'll say that... esp late winter and chance to break down but in early summer i always feed slow release chemical fert with microbes....40C + buddy.....Love your vids.
What's interesting is there are many documented deaths associated with buying produce from commercial organic farms. Because commercial organic farms rely heavily on compost for fertilizer, and their produce generates 4x the price tag of conventional produce, there is intense pressure to get as heavy yields as possible since Big Organic Farming is big business. They often cut corners and use compost that isn't ready, so there have been many deaths associated with e. coli from these organic farms using manure that isn't ready due to economic pressures. There is much more death associated with organic farming than conventional farming at the supermarket level. Considering I feed my tomatoes once every 2 weeks, and each tomato plant gets 1/4 of a watering can's worth of water at a concentration of 1T/gal, meaning each tomato plant gets 0.375 tablespoons of Miracle Gro every 2 weeks, or 0.75 tablespoons a month. You can't tell me there is a difference between a plant that is 100% organic or 100% organic sans 0.75 tablespoons of Miracle Gro a month in terms of health. The folks that think those concentrations are going to harm them aren't thinking it through logically. It's fear over the word "chemical" and not understanding the process, then spreading that myth. What we should be avoiding are the chemical pesticides that commercial farmers use. There are countless studies showing the harm they cause to humans and the environment, which is why I only use pyrethrin, spinosad and BT in my garden (though I don't frown upon occasional Sevin dust placed locally on squash vines to combat borers). But the Miracle Gro thing is a total myth. No science shows that as harmful when used according to the directions on the package.
@@TheMillennialGardener Yep......i tend to spread compost and the organic stuff for inground and use fish and seaweed or chems for pots....i only use manures in winter...so they have chance to breakdown ready for spring burst......but it does crack me up how people think manure and blood and bone is going to be healthier to feed plants and also actually applying the stuff.....if applied by the bag....dust will fly and you can bet 90% of people wont wear a mask.....scary shit ...literally !....i find blood and bone cakes on the surface as well.....so i only apply liquid feeds of that.....most commonly i apply slow release fert with microbes and sprinkle compost on top of that and they work synergistically together and produce great results........Is there any way i can create Phosphorous to add to my plants because all ferts have very low concentrations of it in western australia.....thats why i went 2-1-2 npk with one fert....at least its more balanced if not so strong.
The real issue with fertilizer is over use not synthetic vs organic. Many plants probably don't even need fertilizers. The only veggies that I fertilize are zucchini, broccoli, tomato, melons, cucumbers, and pumpkins. There might be a few more that need them but I just don't grow them.
I agree. I use it twice a month, which equates to a total of 6 tablespoons of fertilizer per month in a 40 square foot bed. Considering it rains here 4 days a week in the summer, I don't consider it an issue. The key is responsible use.
@@RubberDuckStyle it depends what you're growing, the type of soil you're growing in, how densely you're growing...almost everything I grow are non-native plants. Therefore, everything is highly susceptible to insect damage, disease and requires modification to perform in my climate. It also boils down to yields. The less food you have to buy, the better it is for the environment, in general. If adding fertilizers increases your yields, it becomes worth it. You have to trial with and without and give it an honest assessment.
This year I built a few beds from cedar fence pickets, one 4x4 and two 4x12, plus five 3x3 beds for fruit trees. It's two pickets high, so roughly 11" tall. I chose that because it turned out to be at least half as expensive per square foot of bed compared to treated wood. They seem pretty sturdy so far, particularly the smaller ones. The big ones bowed out a little when I filled them with soil, but haven't changed shape since. Hopefully they'll look strong after this season and I'll happily build more like this.
That's a good question. I do not know because it was eliminated from residential use while I was in high school, so I was too young to realize such things. I do know, however, that elements like arsenic and lead are extremely toxic to human life. Whereas copper is an essential trace nutrient for life, arsenic and lead are not. Lead is a great example of "toxic at any dose." We learned the hard way that lead water pipes were making people literally insane (hence the word "plumber" is a derivative of plumbumb, the Latin word for "lead"). I would prefer to have zero arsenic in my life, though that's probably "fear" talking and not science.
@@TheMillennialGardener the old pressure treated wood did not affect the growth of plants...so thats not a reliable method to say its ok... THAT being said... there are TERRIBLE organic fertilizers and fungicide and herbicides etc just as dirty as conventional... its more of a do what you think is best... today's pressure treated wood is much better than the old stuff... but im not so sure I trust the science just yet... science always changes...
How many beds do you have? I did consider this briefly, but having to double-coat hundreds of feet of board would have taken months - literally - so I went with treated lumber.
@@TheMillennialGardener I have eight 4x8 beds, 6 of which are 16 inches tall and two that are 8 inches tall. It took me two months to build, stain, site preparation and fill these.
There are things you can do: torching, painting, linseed oil...but look at all the boards I have. The time and money it would take to accomplish all of that is astronomical. I personally can't afford to spend weeks doing that when there science doesn't show any real harm to treated lumber, provided it's copper azole.
@@ashtanga2000 Did you do this? I'm very curious how long it lasts against rot and termite damage. I could easily char wood quickly by just sliding boards over my chiminea with a two foot opening. I was going to test with a 2x4 to see how long it lasts. I might make a video.
I'm skeptical of the ill effects of the consumption of produce that has been treated with pesticide. Even Consumer Reports, which favors organic produce, admitst most of the science involving the effects on health are from farmworkers, which is immensely different and significant. They also point out that not all conventional produce has the same pesticide treatment, so you can be irrationally concerned over certain kinds of produce that are extremely low in pesticide exposure. I noticed in another video, the presenter recommends using something live Sevin on grass. If your walking on grass, have kids playing and running in it, and have pets that go all over it, you should expect to drag pesticide residue into your home also. Perhaps the dust and dirt which is blown by the wind on that treated grass, including when the grass is cut, may also go airborne and into the lungs.
Perfect analogy with the pizza and you not turning into one. Literally perfect! I’m a biologist and a teacher and love when somebody puts something in a way that it can be taken in… see what I did there? Great channel and you got you a new sub.
I have, literally, dozens of videos on that 😅 The short answer is figs are endemic to the Mediterranean where it does not rain from June 1 to September 1. They ripen in their native climate in perfect drought. I have an inverse Mediterranean climate where June 1 through September 15 is our rainy season where every day is a 50% chance of thunderstorms. Figs spoil when they get rained on, so I must trial them because I don't want to waste precious in-ground space on varieties that burst, split and spoil at the first sign of drizzle. I only plant the rain-tolerant ones.
Red wood, cedar, etc are no where near the same price as pressure treated. They can't even be compared because they are so much more expensive than pressure treated. In the last year these already expensive woods have become even more expensive. Go with pressure treated and save yourself a lot of money.
Do you recall the price difference between the spruce and standard pressure treated wood of the same size? Also, did you paint, stain or oil it? Spruce does not grow where I live, so it isn't available locally at the big box stores.
@@TheRainHarvester I haven't seen termites, thankfully, but that's because we get quarterly treatments. Apparently, they're a problem pretty much...everywhere. I can tell you I am not going to torch hundreds of feet of board. I think it boils down to the economy of time and what you're willing to do.
Linseed oil will provide some rot resistance. However, it won't be as strong as pressure treated wood, and you'll have to use a ton of it. It's fairly expensive, and one container is only enough to stain 1-2 raised beds. Considering I have hundreds of feet of board in my garden, it would have taken me months and hundreds of dollars to stain that much wood. It's up to you if it's worth that kind of time. For me, I would have lost an entire season staining all of this wood. Then, you have to get into the science of linseed oil. What is that doing to your soil? Is polymerized linseed oil leaching into your beds more or less harmful than copper azole? What if it's worse? For me, it just isn't worth it since MCA treatment seems to be a total non-issue.
You can reduce the likelihood of "salts" building up in your soil by simply making sure you follow pkg directions... MOST often people think... if some is good... more is better... and thats where the big issue comes in... follow directions...use accordingly... and you will be 95% there... my issue with miracle grow is more of an ethics than product thing..we just got some soil and nutes from lowes giveaway... we will use them... but I won't buy them... our raised beds are top soil, organic peat moss, and free compost from our municipality... I tripled our space this year for almost nothing since the compost is free:)
Precisely. It bugs me when folks find a case of misuse and then use that case to make an argument against it. I see this countless times in Amazon reviews of folks not following directions and then leaving a bad review 😠 I understand the position of not liking individual brands, though. That's sensible. My issue is...what fertilizer companies are better, though? They're all kind of...ehhhh...making fertilizer is a dirty process. Best of luck to your new garden space! I did the same thing last season and it's real, hard work.
There are a few varieties of citrus that can survive down to 15-20F. They do well in-ground here. Examples are Owari Satsuma, Brown Select Satsuma, Bloomsweet Grapefruit, Ichang Lemon. I am growing a Meyer Lemon in ground with protection that survived the winter unharmed and is currently flowering. All citrus do well here in containers. My blood orange only needs to be carried indoors 2-3 nights a year when we occasionally dip below 25F. Otherwise, it just needs a sheet tossed over it up against the house for added warmth.
@@AM-lz2jr yup... toss some cardboard in the bottom some sticks and maybe a few chunks if logs or scrap woid...I have see people toss crushed waterbottlws too... I have 8 20 gallon totes, a 5 by 2 foot (8 inch deep) and a few pots...it cost me less than $50 to fill using equal parts peat, and top soil with compost free from the township... also once you fill it... you just need an inexpensive amendment each year after...
I know it's a pretty polarizing topic, but I wanted to weigh in on my perspective. If you can get natural, rot resistant wood for a good price, I say do it, but don't disparage people for using pressure treated lumber because the science isn't there to show it's harmful. The synthetic fertilizers are a little more of a gray area, but I think a lot of the problems come from overuse. They should be used as needed, where needed and not just pumped into your soil constantly.
You cannot come to the conclusion that the plants cannot poison you because the soil is non toxic because you can’t see it because the plants are not sick from negative effects of the soil. This is testable with a control group of plants in an untreated box, perhaps the plants would look the same perhaps they taste different, perhaps the plant in the treated box is toxic, but is not visible from outside appearances but will be toxic to bees. Also you have no idea the capacity of each plant to hold a particular toxin. There are hundreds if not thousands of toxic plants that grow in that same garden soil and anobolize poison from the non toxic soil and appear healthy, and we cannot assume that a given plant could not react differently when exposed to unnatural chemicals. While I think your hypothesis is likely correct, you are making a boatload of assumptions.
I believe that is the case with both synthetic fertilizers and pressure treated lumber. I require a reason beyond "because they're chemicals." Everything is a chemical, including things like linseed oil and organic fertilizers. I need to see evidence that it's a harmful chemical, and I don't believe the science shows that.
Do you grow in raised beds? If so, what material did you use? Let us know in the Comments below!
I do both raise bet and grow. Right now all fig have rust and they are not that big. I kind of sad, but will see. Trying neen oil, so far no progress.
I have several fruit trees in grown and some vegetables and herbs too.
I really appreciate the fact that you dare to question the myths out there. I have found that it really pays to do your own research. One person recently said, "I don't just watch videos, I also read"...or something to that effect. Thank you for sharing. Loved the "song" at the end.
That's what I try and do. I never know what's real these days. There is so much purposeful misinformation, disinformation and outright fear, we owe it all to ourselves to research independently. That being said, don't just take my word for it. I'm just some guy with an opinion. If you feel you can defend your position in an argument and not back down, you probably have put in the research. Glad you enjoyed the Sounds of Dale 😂
Absolutely great info. I don't know what you do for a living, but you would be an amazing teacher or journalist. Your videos are always so clear, concise and logically organized.
I'm an electrical engineer. It probably has something to do with it 😆 Thanks for watching!
@@TheMillennialGardener I'm an engineer who really enjoys your videos. I have always been 90% sure you were one too.
I’ve been watching you from about the beginning my man and this is by far my favorite video of yours.
Really? Interesting choice. Is this one of those "militant" subjects that gets under your skin? I am definitely tired of explaining myself in comments, so I made this video so I can reference it instead and save time in the long run 😅
@@TheMillennialGardener I think im most intrigued with your no-nonsense practicality while also remaining deferential to folks' particular sentiments. Tricky line to walk.
For example, you mention that a good reason not to use miracle-gro is that it's a monsanto product which many people despise even though clearly you don't.
I'm hearing a nod to the situation without any kind of character judgement which is so rare in any place these days and practically nonexistent on the internet. That's sincerity. Respect.
I'm not militant anything, spent 2 tours being militant and I'm super over militancy. I believe in a time and place for all things; I appreciated your take and I expect you're going to get much more drama than esteem in response to this video, I wanted to reach out and counter it with my own praise for you and what you're doing.
Thanks for being brave enough to cover this topic. When I bought my treated boards the big box employee warned me not to use it for gardening. I use copper-treated pressure treated pine in my raised beds. I read independent research on the topic. Even the old nastier arsenic boards had very little soil migration and even less plant absorption. I have four beds that are over 16 years old and just this year I had to replace one end board and two side boards. A great community garden near me used untreated boards and their 30+beds fell apart quickly and had to be rebuilt this year. This time, they went with copper-pressure treated. I do compost topping each year, but I will often give new plants a helping hand with Jack's soluble 20-20-20. And I always use diluted synthetic for indoor seedlings starts until they are transplanted.
Thank you for putting out this video , I worried my pressure treated Timber may have been a problem but now I realise it’s fine.
Glad it was helpful! Thanks for watching.
“None of these plants are sad”. You’re a saint and a scholar, kudos sir
finally some common sense on this stuff, esp. the fertilizer issue. Now I have a source to refer people to, when I hear comments about "horrible" non-organic fertilizer. Thanks! (and the outtake...fabulous...great to see Dale leading his pack in howling!)
Glad you enjoyed it. Especially Dale. Thanks for watching!
Cows prefer grass that hasn't had synthetic fertilizers used. Maybe they're onto something?
Decades ago I read of an experiment where cows were free to choose between two adjacent plots, and they unanimously fed from the plot that was free of use of synthetic fertilizers.
I tend to use natural and synthetic fertilizers in combination . I too live in the rainy southeast and manures , compost , blood and bonemeal and fish fertilizer are great but sometimes not quite enough in rainy summers . You really get the best of both worlds with a combination . Miracle Gro is a great product and I noticed this spring they add beneficial bacteria to their newest tomato food . It never hurts to add more bacteria to the existing bacteria in the soil as it helps to convert ammonia to nitrite then to nitrate etc . I completely agree that the plants themselves are the best indicator of toxicity in the soil . If they are healthy then that’s what matters . It’s all chemical processes in the soil to break down all nutrients in the soil to a form plants can use . Great video !
We got 102.40 inches of rain in 2018 and over 90 inches of rain last year where I live. Like you said, I just can't do it purely organically and get good yields because it's too wet. Too much soil washout, too much rapid drainage from the sandy base soil. The solubles are imperative for yields. Other than the synthetic fertilizers, I am almost purely natural/organic. Considering I feed my tomatoes once every 2 weeks, and each tomato plant gets about 1/4 of a watering can's worth of water at a concentration of 1T/gal, that means each tomato plant gets 0.375 tablespoons of Miracle Gro every 2 weeks, or 0.75 tablespoons a month. You can't tell me there is a difference between a plant that is 100% organic or 100% organic sans 0.75 tablespoons of Miracle Gro a month in terms of health. Now YIELDS, on the other hand, are a huge difference. For a 3/4 tablespoon a month supplement, I'm getting triple the yields. The folks that think those concentrations are going to harm them aren't thinking it through logically.
Great channel. It’s my go to for garden advice.
Thank you! I really appreciate that.
Excellently explained my friend, I could not have put it any better. I'm hoping a few doses of that stuff will help my plants and trees recover a bit quicker. Keep up the good vids Sir.
Here's a bit of good news: I have some new buds on my Smith fig tree starting to open. The others aren't doing much, but I see a few previously black buds appearing to turn green and swell. We'll be behind, but all hope isn't lost.
@@TheMillennialGardener That is good news indeed! I am seeing some slow recovery from the in ground stuff....not a lot....but something. Not giving up on them. :)
I love the clarity of your explanations across your videos.
I appreciate that! Thank you for watching.
Thank you so much for the explanation. I ❤ Dale 🐶! So cute!
I'm glad you enjoyed it. Dale sends his warmest regards!
Nice to come back, the Easter miracle!
Thanks for watching!
I am a believer in both points you make. The plants absorb nutrients by the same mechanism whether organic or synthetic.
I do think synthetic fertilizers shouldn't be abused due to the salt issue, however. That being said, I don't think they're inherently problematic when used reasonably. Thanks for watching!
I think thats true for the fertilizers he mentioned but it's not true when you have a thriving soil food web. In that system, the microbiology in the soil and their relationship with root zone of the plant is how they absorb nutrients naturally.
I'll use miracle grow in my potted plants because I can wash the salts out if necessary (just by extra irrigation). I prefer to use compost / wood mulch and if needed some type of fish blend to add nitrogen for my in-ground plants. I think I'd rather just let the soil biology do it's thing for in ground plants (tbh I'd rather not have to amend at all), but my potted plants are in a soil-less mix... I do agree that the miracle-grow chemical fertilizers (especially those high nitrogen ones) make things grow insanely vigorously. Reminds me that I need to go feed my figs, they're waking up :)
I think that is an excellent, sensible approach. I haven't had time yet, but I want to convert my entire garden to drip irrigation via my rain barrels. I just bought a 44 lb bag of micronized azomite. What I would like to do is use less of the MiracleGro for my beds and switch more to an azomite+fish emulsion cocktail, but my potted figs will continue to get MiracleGro in heavy doses. I will likely still spot treat my tomatoes, cucumbers and peppers with Miracle Gro, though, because they yield too heavily when you give them synthetics. It's worth it because it literally doubles your harvest, in my opinion. The greens don't need it, though.
The citrus tree in the pot is priceless!
It's a Moro Blood Orange. It's a very beautiful tree.
Only tidbit I have to add is that in commercial farming, salinization of the soil and dead zone in the sea are a real issue when it come to synthetic fertilizer.
For people who are concerned what fertilizer are safe to use, the WSDA website have a "Fertilizer Product Database" which list all the retail fertilizer products with a breakdown for the amount of heavy metals found in each. Some products have higher level of heavy metal than what is deemed safe, especially if you consider European levels. But then again, you have to look at the application method and how much of it actually accumulates over time in the soil and how much gets into the plants and into the body, so it gets complicated. There are some studies of how much heavy metal the plants actually pick up despite the higher amount found in the soil, and it tend to be a lower amount.
I have experimented growing with soil plus compost only without any extra fertilizer and gotten amazing result, and I still feel it's the healthiest for the soil biology without the extra salt and potential traces of other harmful chemicals/heavy metal. But at the sametime, I also don't mind using synthetic fertilizer, I'm just careful with the application and not over do it. I use Osmocote because it is synthetic fertilizer, but is slow release so that should alleviate the issues of burning the plants and putting too much salt in the soil too quickly. Mainly I only use it for containers. For raised beds, I just add more compost each year. I also use synthetic fertilizer to prep my straw bales at the beginning of each season, I guess the organic alternative to that are urine and chicken compost.
I think we need to keep things in context. We're talking about using these fertilizers in a backyard garden at concentrations recommended on the package. When I do the math, this equates to each tomato plant getting 0.75 tablespoons of fertilizer a month. That's really nothing. Comparing that to commercial farms that have terrible land management practices in place: monocropping and flood irrigating with massive amounts of fertilizer with tremendous amounts of runoff can't really be compared to what we're doing in our residential yards. What we're doing is harmless. What they're doing has consequences.
The problem I have is when folks take the worst examples of bad commercial farming practices and then say the product is bad and you shouldn't use it in your home garden. They're two very different things. Using small amounts of these products as a supplement in very controlled feeding operations is a great way to grow tons more food per square foot, which is actually more environmentally friendly. You're growing more food on less land with no consequences. But this is the recommendation for the heavy feeders. If you can grow light feeders completely organically and not use products, that's great, too.
Oh, thank you! Finally, someone shows some sense!
Thank you for watching!
Thank you so much. People really can confuse you. I live in Orlando Florida. We have Sandy soil and some clay, but it rain ridiculously long especially in summer. I try all natural and fail miserably. No worms and vegetables. lol
@@americancubangardener Wendy, are you also subscribed to David The Good? He's done a lot of gardening in Central FL and has great tips and written a number of books.
@@shashakeeleh5468 I’m. I like him a lot.
@@americancubangardener the one thing I absolutely believe is what he says about hay, straw and manure being poisoned. I experienced it for myself and will never use commercial grades again (manure), or hay or straw.
I've owned my home for 35+ years. In the beginning, cedar lumber and fencing was easily available and long-lasting, here in Central NY (Syracuse area). Not so for a long time, now. My understanding is that cedar lumber is virtually impossible to find east of the Mississippi River. It certainly can't be found, here. I am rebuilding and installing new raised beds (albeit slowly - heart failure) and have opted to use pressure treated lumber. Fear of pressure treated wood was based on there being "arsenic" in it. It had an arsenic element containing compound in it, which is not the same as free arsenic. Nevertheless, that compound is in the past, having been replaced with copper element containing new treatment formulas. Mind you, free copper in your body is toxic too, but the 'PR factor' is better. I have a chemical engineering education and don't fear the mere existence of an element in these compounds. I'll go by the regulatory toxicity data in this use.
Awesome video. I have been doing a lot of research about organic vs synthetic fertilizers but this was by far the most informative and answered every question i had. Im growing over 50 fruit trees in South Florida organically but the sandy soil and my potted citrus hold little nutrients.. i feel more comfortable now introducing the water soluble fertilizers. What is your take on synthetic slow release fertilizers?
I have never used synthetic slow release fertilizers, primarily for three reasons:
1. They don't improve the soil. If you want slow release fertilizers, use organic slow release, because it will also feed the worms, bacteria, fungi, and the rest of the microbiome. That will help your soil get better over time.
2. The organic slow release fertilizers have far more trace micronutrients since they're made of whole animal and plant parts.
3. Slow release synthetics tend to shed the nitrogen very quickly, so initially, they wind up being a very high nitrogen fertilizer.
Basically, I don't think they do anything well. If you need synthetics, give them the soluble stuff that they can use immediately. The rest of your time, you should be trying to improve your sandy, low-nutrient soil by adding compost, mulch and organic granulated fertilizer.
Honestly sandy soil is a losing battle, organic fertilizer will bleed out of the soil as fast as anything else, compost does nothing, and mulch doesnt help much, its hell in the form of soil to get it amended and the best thing to do is put liquid fertilizers typically synthetic as anything else is just a waste of time and money.
Thank you so much! I am building my raised beds this coming week and now I don’t have line the wood!! Yay, one less step!
You're welcome! I'd urge you to quickly check a few sources just so make sure you truly agree with me before proceeding. This is my opinion and I don't want to mislead anyone. Thanks for watching!
This is such a helpful video. Just what I needed. I accidentally bought a pressure treated wood lattice and was worried about growing cucumbers on it because of the myth.
Oh you'll be fine. Remember, if the treatment chemical was somehow harmful to the plant, it would be sickly climbing up the trellis. One gentlemen did a soil test right up against his various pressure treated wood beds on RUclips, and what he found was the concentrations of preservative was within normal ranges of copper for soils, and the amount of concentration increase you can expect is similar to if you were to lean your skin onto a deck railing, or walk across a wooden deck barefoot - which everyone does in the summer. If you're not afraid to rest your elbows on a railing or walk across a wood floor barefoot, this isn't really a concern because remember, if you walk across or lean on treated wood, you're effectively absorbing some of its contents into your body. Of course, none of that matters because if the levels aren't enough to make you sick, it is harmless. Otherwise, you'd be seeing studies of people with decks on their homes contracting diseases.
@@TheMillennialGardener that is so true. Thank you for the in-depth explanation. Your channel has been such a great resource! We enjoy your videos and advice.
Well explained, thanks for sharing. God's blessings always, Hallelujah Grace Shalom
Thanks for watching!
Great video. Your correct about both of these myths on the net. It’s amazing how some people will just repeat something they are told as if it’s a undisputed fact.
Love your analytical approach to gardening. Big fan of the channel!
Thank you. That being said, I don't anyone to repeat what I'm saying just because I'm saying it, either. At the end of the day, we all owe it to ourselves to do independent research. Synthetic fertilizers aren't inherently harmful, but they also shouldn't be the core of your routine. The core of your routine should be organic fertilizers and soil conditioners, composting, mulching, etc. I use synthetics for my heaviest feeders because I live in sand and it rains here a lot, and I find them necessary for strong yields. What I don't like is folks going around saying they're somehow going to poison your fruit and kill all the earthworms, because the science just isn't there for that nonsense.
You're so informative, thank you for sharing your video!
Glad it was helpful! Thank you for watching.
I grow in raised beds and large containers. Originally, I used raised bed soil plus compost, now I just add compost each season.
How much compost do you add per raised bed? I find compost works well for my plants when they're young, but once my tomatoes, specifically, get going, compost isn't enough. They demand too many nutrients and the raised beds can't hold all the compost they need, so I have to supplement.
You raise some very good points
I grow in raised beds, all types
3 x 8 galvanized beds on sale from northern tool $72.99
15.63-in x 8-in x 5.63-in Standard Cored Concrete Block $1.58
I used 28 blocks to build a roughly 3 x 16 bed $45
I found a lumber yard and used untreated cedar 3/4in x 8ft $27 per panel
I built beds of different sizes with this cedar
I made a choice to stay away from anything pressure treated or chemical laden, I tend to be on the more paranoid side
But you make a good point, how much of it actually gets into the soil and the food
I think you should run a test, to get actual data, facts and demonstrate this
You should setup a 4x4 with pressure treated wood and a control without, grow the same veggies and over the course of a year or 2 measure both the soil and the food. There are plenty of labs out there who would be willing to trade testing for advertising on your channel
I think its worth it, you may be the only person with actual data to back this claim if you do
In terms of the synthetic ferts, they wont hurt you, they just dont build the soil over time like EWC, azomite compost and fish and seaweed do, I do both sometimes, but choose organic mostly
I think you should setup a test to see if there is real leaching both in the soil and food, showing data puts to rest any speculation
good work
Building two beds out of 4x4's would cost hundreds of dollars. It would require 9 4x4's per bed at $23 a piece, with prices currently rising, plus delivery. That's totally out of the question. The soil testing does not matter, because the soil concentrations cannot matter by definition. If the plants are healthy, they can't contain enough of a substance to be harmful to a human being. Even if I were to spend $500 for two test beds and even more for testing of the fruits, the information garnered would be irrelevant. Nutrient composition can vary a lot simply based on individual fruits, and it would be impossible to determine if treated wood was truly impacting the results. The worst thing that could happen is a measurable difference in copper content is observable. Then, you'd have a situation where you're showing an impact, but you have no scale to gauge if it even matters. Let's say the treated wood-grown fruit has 50% more copper mineral content than the other. That is effectively meaningless, because we would have no way of gauging how much copper it takes to be problematic. It's one of those situations where we're creating problems that don't exist simply to talk about them. That's how these myths get spread, and I don't want to contribute to fear-based decision-making. At the end of the day, if the plants are healthy, they can't harm you. We don't really need to analyze it past that.
@@TheMillennialGardener I think you misunderstood my first part, The cedar panels I use are $27, they are 8ft x 3/4in x 10in high,,,I was suggesting a very basic 4ft x 4ft x 10in bed,,,,so you would only need 2 pieces for $54 total per bed,,,for the second part, if they look healthy and they ARE uptaking anything undesirable then it must not carry that much weight and be affecting the plant much at all,,,,the topic is still very interesting to me
The issue with products like miracle gro and such are the runoff into waterways. They cause algae growth and can suffocate aquatic wildlife.
I use both. Mostly syntetics for macronutrients and I use organics for micronutrients. I don't think there is anything wrong with using syntetics as long as you add organic matter to the soil as well in the form of mulch and compost.
Noticed your avocado tree on your last video.... is that in ground? I am in charlotte and have small trees potted, how are you growing yours? You should do a video on your citrus trees as well!
Yes, my avocado is in ground. I have many videos on my Lila Avocado if you search "avocado" on my channel. Same thing with my citrus. If you search "satsuma" or "citrus" on my channel, you'll get a lot of results. I would post a link to one, but I literally have a dozen+ videos on them and would urge you to check out the ones that interest you.
We have one very large 16’x5’ bed that is made with pressure treated wood. We have 5 beds made of galvanized steel. All of our plants are thriving.
We do garden all organically using organic fertilizers when necessary.
Btw, love the singing at the end. Dale is so cute! And so is your wife/girlfriend/fiancé???
That's a big bed. Is it hard to reach to the center? I have 4' beds and sometimes I struggle and wish I went 42 inches wide. That's Brittany. She's my fiance. Dale sings much better than we do.
@@TheMillennialGardener Wonderful! Happy for you that you are engaged! We would not have built it 5’ wide if we had thought it through a bit more. 4’ is better for a max width. Yes, I climb through it sometimes!! 😂🤪
2 beds are 4’ by 8’. 3 are 3’ by 5.5’.
👍👍Excellent video! I didn’t know I knew so little!😆🤯😳😆👏👏
Thanks for watching!
thin wire in a circle or square lined with hay or weed paper filled with soil and a few steaks to hold fence,great way to hide stumps and other eye soars in your yard
I use redwood in the front yard and PT in the back. This is 100% for aesthetics and a nod to the fact that should I need to sell my property, my awareness of PT’s suitability will be trumped by the general public (meaning prospective buyer)‘s ignorance.
Resell value is a factor when considering the long run financial offset so yeah, it costs more now but it’ll save me a ton in not having to remove it later.
If you're doing it for home value aesthetics, then I would agree with you. I'm not going anywhere anytime soon, and this is purely for gardening in the privacy of my backyard. Are you located in the PNW? Redwood is hard to find on the East Coast.
@@TheMillennialGardener close, I'm in Sacramento. Redwood isn't cheap however California has recently enacted a crazy-restrictive dump policy which effectively means that you're stuck with even the cut ends of PT boards forever or whenever the legislature figures out that they banned PT in all dumps without having any means on hand to deal with the extant material (which also means forever).
@@addammadd that's absurd, and also an unenforceable policy. All that means is that people will start hiding debris in their trash bags, and they'll just start illegally dumping in the woods. Make it impossible for people to dispose of common items and it'll become a littering crisis. Sorry to hear that.
Great video! I am in the process of building a new home and was thinking about building my raised beds using cinder blocks (with today's lumber prices it may be even cheaper :-) ). Do you know if there are any drawbacks (other than cost) of building the beds out of cinder blocks?
I didn't build my beds out of cinder blocks for three reasons: cost, aesthetics and I was concerned they'd fall over on me. The "cost" argument is rapidly disappearing with the insane cost of lumber these days. I think wood beds look better in my setup, but if you can make them look good, "aesthetics" is relative. My main concern would be if the blocks won't hold their shape. I would be concerned that the weight of the soil behind the blocks would topple them or cause them to fall out of line. If you can secure them somehow, then that point is moot, so I can't really say anything truly negative about the idea.
Synthetic fertilizers don't have Mico nutrients so that another thing that needs to be bought and added. It is also most certainly not a sustainable practice. I have found soil life using synthetic to be a fraction of those beds where no dig and organic fertiser and compost is used. Does synthetic work? Yes, every commercial farmer uses it. Does it promote soil health and living soils? No. That's why the world's soils are so depleted, because everything is synthetic and ruining natural cycles and processes.
I do agree on the wood though.
Synthetic fertilizers do have micro-nutrients, but they are limited to what the processing plants add to them. The scope of this video was not how to use synthetic fertilizers. It was only to dispel the myth that they are somehow harmful to us. I do not solely use synthetic fertilizers. In fact, I do quite the opposite. The foundation of my fertilizing practices are organic 5-5-5's, bone meal, crab shell meals, compost, mulch and buried kitchen scraps. Synthetic fertilizers make up a very small portion of my regiment, and I only supplement them to my heaviest feeders: figs, citrus, cucurbits and nightshades. But again, that wasn't the scope of this video.
Thank you for telling the TRUTH.
My pleasure. The pressure treated wood myth is one that just needs to go away forever. The synthetic fertilizer myth is almost as bad.
Thank you for this!! Everything is harmful in certain doses!! 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻
You're welcome! Thanks for watching.
Good explanation. Thank you very much!!!!
You’re welcome! Thank you for watching.
Add tomatoes need 6-8 weeks before planting..I have yet to harden off plants but according to my post question no one seems to bother with following a strict hardening off process...I've already ripped the length of time needed for seedlings and if I can harden off seedlings without taking a week off of work to harden off plants I'll rip that chapter out to.
Have you seen my video on my pop-up greenhouse? Using this method, I don't have to harden off seedlings. Once they germinate, they go into here during the day. I don't use grow lights thanks to this baby. ruclips.net/video/AHYkfvOytmE/видео.html
Excellent information, thank you!
Glad it helped! Thank you for watching.
You need to do your building with wet pressure treated wood before it dries, unless you keep it properly stacked, in bulk, so its own right keeps it straight. Building while PT lumber is wet will force the wood to remain in alignment while drying.
I try to keep it stacked. Problem is, when you only buy a few boards, sometimes the weight isn't enough. PT wood can be a real nuisance.
Thanks for the Shared Knowledge&Techniques....Very Informative and well spoken.....Great Content my Growmie......Cheers⭐🌼😎⭐🌐🌴
Thanks for watching!
I keep hearing even numbered syntetics like 20-20-20 is bad since phospurus stays in the soil much longer than nitrogen and Potassium. So by using them long term you will get a phospurus buildup that will kill benificial bacteria and worms will not want to be there anymore.
Is there truth to this?
I was using chemical fertilizers but I switched to things like kelp meal, alfalfa meal, crustacean meal, fish meal, gypsum, oyster shell flour, etc.
If it is working for you and you don't mind the additional cost, then there is no reason to use synthetics. Synthetics are a way to greatly increase yields for a low price. I can't afford to fertilize everything I have in my garden purely organically and get the yields I can get with synthetics. If you can handle that, then that's truly awesome.
The copper will make it into carrot greens (I use it anyway). The salts in the synthetics will build up and harm soil life over time.
Wow
You have a beautiful garden (wow)!!!!😊
Thank you!
Hey MG, Mark here from Charlotte again. I also researched heavily on the use of treated lumber and came to the same conclusion. But on another note I noticed in your garden a number of cold-weather crops like kale, chard, and the like. my question is were these planted last fall? Surely they haven’t gotten that big this year. I’m in a similar zone, just converted my garden to raised beds with weed block between the beds, at 64, I’m getting tired of weeds and less than optimal soil. Thanks
Yes. I planted many of those crops last fall. They make it through the winters here unprotected. You should be able to grow kale, cabbage, carrots, radishes, garlic and spinach in Charlotte all winter. Here on the coast, I can also do chard, dill, parsley, cilantro, beets and onions, but the beets and dill occasionally take a little damage. Lettuces are hit or miss. Romaines don't seem to do great here once we get below 26 degrees or so, but the leaf lettuces do well here all winter.
Great video.
I listen to 5 different gardening radio shows here in TX.. the only one who half way suggest using synthetic fertilizer also has those companies in his commercials.. but to each his own...
What are the logical and scientific reasons why the others are against it? Do they provide data and sound logic?
See? This video is an example of why I subscribe to your channel and continue to watch (and to heed your advice). The information is well-researched and provided in a straightforward, nonsensical manner. Two asides: 1) i notice your asparagus is growing; mine has not yet broken through the soil, but then I live in one zone colder than yours and my garden is at the bottom of a small valley; 2) It's just my opinion, I realize, but Dale sings much better than either of you! :)
Thanks. I'm glad you found it helpful. My asparagus was up within 10 days of planting the roots, but my soil here doesn't freeze. It is workable all year, so my soil temps probably "bottom out" around 50. The asparagus would be taller, but it got killed back twice with a hard freeze in March and this last hard freeze on April 3. It still looks good, though. Being a better singer than me or Brittany is not a compliment. The three of us will not be touring the country anytime soon on our vocal talents.
@@TheMillennialGardener LOL!
I used in treated Douglas fur for my garden beds was crazy expensive though
I’ve seen the costs. Fir is great, but I can build 6 beds out of MCA wood 😂 If I only had one or two beds, maybe I would go specialty, but I have too many to make fancy wood reasonable.
Nice job explaining these!
Thanks for watching!
Thanks! Great information.
Thanks for watching!
What's your opinion on foliar feeding with liquid seaweed and fish emulsion vs synthetics like Miracle Grow?
I'm 100% onboard. I always soak my tomatoes in fish emulsion when I transplant them. I think I am going to keep doing that throughout the season to see if fish emulsion can help keep disease away with the "good bacteria." If you are using synthetic fertilizers like Miracle Gro, you may want to use a reduced concentration to prevent burns. Maybe 1/4 or 1/2 strength.
@@TheMillennialGardener I have a lot of willow trees around my pond. I think I’m going to start making willow water tea to water my tomatoes to get better root growth from the root ball and add more rooting from the stem hairs with the rooting hormone willows have in the twigs. My big fig is definitely dead from that negative 3 temp. I have a few leaves sprouting from underground around the trunks. I have well over 200 fruit and pecan trees and my Celeste was my favorite tree. I hope my 7 pawpaws make it here in my sandy and very shallow rocky soil. Not good conditions for many trees especially pawpaw. I’ll have to really water them. Luckily they’re a waterhose length from my house.
Hi, I have a very sandy garden in Pinehurst,NC. How often do YOU use the water soluble fertilizers? I have tomatoes, cucumber, peppers,watermelon and pumpkin planted which I know are heavy feeders. Thank you!
I fertilize every other weekend, so every 14 days. My soil is very sandy as well. It's best to fertilize during dry weather since you want the fertilizer to sit in the soil and not "wash out" with rain. You'll want the soluble fertilizer to sit in the soil for 24 hours for the plants to take it up. Therefore, if I see it's going to rain on Day 14, maybe I'll fertilize on Day 12 or Day 15 if those days are forecast dry.
@@TheMillennialGardener Thank you so much! Subscribed and working through your vids. Super, super helpful
What’s your thought on ACQ-alkaline copper quaternary treated wood? Planning to build garden beds for the community
According to treatedwood.com:
"Preserve CA - Copper Azole Type C (CA-C) is found readily across the US and Copper Azole Type B (CA-B) in Canada. Please watch our informative videos below to learn more.
The CA-C preservative formulation is made of 96.1 % soluble copper (100% recycled) and organic triazole co-biocides; tebuconazole and propiconazole, which help control copper-tolerant fungi. Preserve CA is widely used across the US.
The CA-B, copper azole Type B, formulation is very similar, also made of 96.1% 100% recycled, soluble copper and 3.7% tebuconazole. Preserve CA-C has been registered for use in Canada since 2002.
Preserve ACQ Alkaline Copper Quaternary (ACQ) used as a wood preservative is being replaced with Preserve CA-C or CA-B, prompted by the demand for quaternary needed in cleaning products due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Both Preserve CA types B and C, are seen as “greener” preservatives and a more sustainable option than previous wood preservatives. Both are also certified by Home Innovation Research Labs for points toward NGBS Green Certification to the ICC 700 National Green Building Standard."
Looking at this data, I would prefer Copper Azole over ACQ. Everything at Lowe's that I've seen in MCA (micronized copper azole). I like the fact it is very highly pure copper, which is getting close to the concentrations in approved organic copper fungicides. ACQ sounds like it's being voluntarily phased out. I am not saying ACQ is bad, but I would prefer looking around for MCA/CA. Again, the stuff sold at Lowe's that I've seen in CA, so it should be very easy to find.
Great Video and i totally agree with you....I refer to the fert section.....I dont have raised beds but found it interesting all the same....Makes me laugh when people say they want to grow organic and dont want to use chemicals.....Plants dont differentiate between chemical ferts and organic ferts....they take from the soil what they require......even if there were some dodgy chemicals in the soil...its not what the plant seeks from the soil.....it seeks macro and micro nutrients.......The organic lovers think its healthier to feed their plants animal poo.....their blood and bone ...Hello?....so they are eating plants grown from poo and blood and bone of animals and they they think that is healthier than using chemical ferts !!!! hahahah..........REF the salt build up...you are spot on with in ground....they get flushed away....where it is an issue is in containers and some plants are really prone to probs eg Citrus........I flush my containers big time at the start of spring to wash out salts.......there is argument about not using organic ferts in pots a) there are no microbes in potting mix to help break down the organics and b) if your potting mix breaks down organically it will compact.......so feeding pots with organics makes it difficult for the plant to obtain those nutrients and also encourages compaction......so i feed with so called chemical soluble ferts for my citrus/figs and avos .....feed regular but very weak solution ....so no salt build up and it works a treat..........Organic def seems to go well in ground,.....I'll say that... esp late winter and chance to break down but in early summer i always feed slow release chemical fert with microbes....40C + buddy.....Love your vids.
What's interesting is there are many documented deaths associated with buying produce from commercial organic farms. Because commercial organic farms rely heavily on compost for fertilizer, and their produce generates 4x the price tag of conventional produce, there is intense pressure to get as heavy yields as possible since Big Organic Farming is big business. They often cut corners and use compost that isn't ready, so there have been many deaths associated with e. coli from these organic farms using manure that isn't ready due to economic pressures. There is much more death associated with organic farming than conventional farming at the supermarket level.
Considering I feed my tomatoes once every 2 weeks, and each tomato plant gets 1/4 of a watering can's worth of water at a concentration of 1T/gal, meaning each tomato plant gets 0.375 tablespoons of Miracle Gro every 2 weeks, or 0.75 tablespoons a month. You can't tell me there is a difference between a plant that is 100% organic or 100% organic sans 0.75 tablespoons of Miracle Gro a month in terms of health. The folks that think those concentrations are going to harm them aren't thinking it through logically.
It's fear over the word "chemical" and not understanding the process, then spreading that myth. What we should be avoiding are the chemical pesticides that commercial farmers use. There are countless studies showing the harm they cause to humans and the environment, which is why I only use pyrethrin, spinosad and BT in my garden (though I don't frown upon occasional Sevin dust placed locally on squash vines to combat borers). But the Miracle Gro thing is a total myth. No science shows that as harmful when used according to the directions on the package.
@@TheMillennialGardener Yep......i tend to spread compost and the organic stuff for inground and use fish and seaweed or chems for pots....i only use manures in winter...so they have chance to breakdown ready for spring burst......but it does crack me up how people think manure and blood and bone is going to be healthier to feed plants and also actually applying the stuff.....if applied by the bag....dust will fly and you can bet 90% of people wont wear a mask.....scary shit ...literally !....i find blood and bone cakes on the surface as well.....so i only apply liquid feeds of that.....most commonly i apply slow release fert with microbes and sprinkle compost on top of that and they work synergistically together and produce great results........Is there any way i can create Phosphorous to add to my plants because all ferts have very low concentrations of it in western australia.....thats why i went 2-1-2 npk with one fert....at least its more balanced if not so strong.
The real issue with fertilizer is over use not synthetic vs organic. Many plants probably don't even need fertilizers. The only veggies that I fertilize are zucchini, broccoli, tomato, melons, cucumbers, and pumpkins. There might be a few more that need them but I just don't grow them.
I agree. I use it twice a month, which equates to a total of 6 tablespoons of fertilizer per month in a 40 square foot bed. Considering it rains here 4 days a week in the summer, I don't consider it an issue. The key is responsible use.
I don't fertilize there's no need to as long there's enough biology in your soil and I don't use pesticide either.
@@RubberDuckStyle it depends what you're growing, the type of soil you're growing in, how densely you're growing...almost everything I grow are non-native plants. Therefore, everything is highly susceptible to insect damage, disease and requires modification to perform in my climate. It also boils down to yields. The less food you have to buy, the better it is for the environment, in general. If adding fertilizers increases your yields, it becomes worth it. You have to trial with and without and give it an honest assessment.
This year I built a few beds from cedar fence pickets, one 4x4 and two 4x12, plus five 3x3 beds for fruit trees. It's two pickets high, so roughly 11" tall. I chose that because it turned out to be at least half as expensive per square foot of bed compared to treated wood. They seem pretty sturdy so far, particularly the smaller ones. The big ones bowed out a little when I filled them with soil, but haven't changed shape since. Hopefully they'll look strong after this season and I'll happily build more like this.
The fact you got cedar that cheap is a great deal. Wood prices are out of control right now. Thanks for watching.
Did the old CCA lumber make plants look sickly?
That's a good question. I do not know because it was eliminated from residential use while I was in high school, so I was too young to realize such things. I do know, however, that elements like arsenic and lead are extremely toxic to human life. Whereas copper is an essential trace nutrient for life, arsenic and lead are not. Lead is a great example of "toxic at any dose." We learned the hard way that lead water pipes were making people literally insane (hence the word "plumber" is a derivative of plumbumb, the Latin word for "lead"). I would prefer to have zero arsenic in my life, though that's probably "fear" talking and not science.
@@TheMillennialGardener the old pressure treated wood did not affect the growth of plants...so thats not a reliable method to say its ok... THAT being said... there are TERRIBLE organic fertilizers and fungicide and herbicides etc just as dirty as conventional... its more of a do what you think is best... today's pressure treated wood is much better than the old stuff... but im not so sure I trust the science just yet... science always changes...
I grow in raised beds using untreated pine boards coated with 2 coats of organic stain.
How many beds do you have? I did consider this briefly, but having to double-coat hundreds of feet of board would have taken months - literally - so I went with treated lumber.
@@TheMillennialGardener I have eight 4x8 beds, 6 of which are 16 inches tall and two that are 8 inches tall. It took me two months to build, stain, site preparation and fill these.
No! You can still use plain pine. Look up sho sugi ban method for torching wood and making it weather and rot resistant!!!!
There are things you can do: torching, painting, linseed oil...but look at all the boards I have. The time and money it would take to accomplish all of that is astronomical. I personally can't afford to spend weeks doing that when there science doesn't show any real harm to treated lumber, provided it's copper azole.
@@TheMillennialGardener it’s def an option and actually fun. But yes, takes a while to do. Depends on how much money a new gardener has to spend.
@@ashtanga2000 Did you do this? I'm very curious how long it lasts against rot and termite damage. I could easily char wood quickly by just sliding boards over my chiminea with a two foot opening. I was going to test with a 2x4 to see how long it lasts. I might make a video.
@@TheRainHarvester look it up. It’s an ancient method. They do this and put it on houses.
@@ashtanga2000 Oh i already saw a lot about it. Just wondering about your experience with it.
I'm skeptical of the ill effects of the consumption of produce that has been treated with pesticide. Even Consumer Reports, which favors organic produce, admitst most of the science involving the effects on health are from farmworkers, which is immensely different and significant. They also point out that not all conventional produce has the same pesticide treatment, so you can be irrationally concerned over certain kinds of produce that are extremely low in pesticide exposure.
I noticed in another video, the presenter recommends using something live Sevin on grass. If your walking on grass, have kids playing and running in it, and have pets that go all over it, you should expect to drag pesticide residue into your home also. Perhaps the dust and dirt which is blown by the wind on that treated grass, including when the grass is cut, may also go airborne and into the lungs.
Nothing wrong with ruffling feathers
As long as the info is accurate! Thanks for watching.
Perfect analogy with the pizza and you not turning into one. Literally perfect! I’m a biologist and a teacher and love when somebody puts something in a way that it can be taken in… see what I did there? Great channel and you got you a new sub.
Why do you grow figs in pots instead of the ground? Is there a video on that?
I have, literally, dozens of videos on that 😅 The short answer is figs are endemic to the Mediterranean where it does not rain from June 1 to September 1. They ripen in their native climate in perfect drought. I have an inverse Mediterranean climate where June 1 through September 15 is our rainy season where every day is a 50% chance of thunderstorms. Figs spoil when they get rained on, so I must trial them because I don't want to waste precious in-ground space on varieties that burst, split and spoil at the first sign of drizzle. I only plant the rain-tolerant ones.
Red wood, cedar, etc are no where near the same price as pressure treated. They can't even be compared because they are so much more expensive than pressure treated. In the last year these already expensive woods have become even more expensive. Go with pressure treated and save yourself a lot of money.
Correct. I lay this out at 8:58. You'll pay through the nose, for sure.
@@TheMillennialGardener I know, I made that comment before I listened to the whole video. You totally nailed it in your explanation.
@@TheFatTheist thanks for watching!
In new zealand we use arsenic still..
I have spruce and 5 years later still good
Do you recall the price difference between the spruce and standard pressure treated wood of the same size? Also, did you paint, stain or oil it? Spruce does not grow where I live, so it isn't available locally at the big box stores.
@@TheMillennialGardener where I live in Ontario, Canada, pressure treated is lots more. For 2 x10x8’. It was $18. P.t was $26
👍👍👍
Thanks for watching!
Has anyone tried "sugiban" (sp?), burning the wood a bit to avoid rot/termites?
Are termites in your area? If so, I guess those boards are resistant to them too?
@@TheRainHarvester I haven't seen termites, thankfully, but that's because we get quarterly treatments. Apparently, they're a problem pretty much...everywhere. I can tell you I am not going to torch hundreds of feet of board. I think it boils down to the economy of time and what you're willing to do.
does linseed oil help?
Linseed oil will provide some rot resistance. However, it won't be as strong as pressure treated wood, and you'll have to use a ton of it. It's fairly expensive, and one container is only enough to stain 1-2 raised beds. Considering I have hundreds of feet of board in my garden, it would have taken me months and hundreds of dollars to stain that much wood. It's up to you if it's worth that kind of time. For me, I would have lost an entire season staining all of this wood. Then, you have to get into the science of linseed oil. What is that doing to your soil? Is polymerized linseed oil leaching into your beds more or less harmful than copper azole? What if it's worse? For me, it just isn't worth it since MCA treatment seems to be a total non-issue.
@@TheMillennialGardener Thanks for your explanation. Much appreciated.
You can reduce the likelihood of "salts" building up in your soil by simply making sure you follow pkg directions... MOST often people think... if some is good... more is better... and thats where the big issue comes in... follow directions...use accordingly... and you will be 95% there... my issue with miracle grow is more of an ethics than product thing..we just got some soil and nutes from lowes giveaway... we will use them... but I won't buy them... our raised beds are top soil, organic peat moss, and free compost from our municipality... I tripled our space this year for almost nothing since the compost is free:)
Precisely. It bugs me when folks find a case of misuse and then use that case to make an argument against it. I see this countless times in Amazon reviews of folks not following directions and then leaving a bad review 😠 I understand the position of not liking individual brands, though. That's sensible. My issue is...what fertilizer companies are better, though? They're all kind of...ehhhh...making fertilizer is a dirty process. Best of luck to your new garden space! I did the same thing last season and it's real, hard work.
how do you grow oranges in NC? WOW
There are a few varieties of citrus that can survive down to 15-20F. They do well in-ground here. Examples are Owari Satsuma, Brown Select Satsuma, Bloomsweet Grapefruit, Ichang Lemon. I am growing a Meyer Lemon in ground with protection that survived the winter unharmed and is currently flowering. All citrus do well here in containers. My blood orange only needs to be carried indoors 2-3 nights a year when we occasionally dip below 25F. Otherwise, it just needs a sheet tossed over it up against the house for added warmth.
@@TheMillennialGardener That is great. I'm in upstate SC and I did not thick we could grow any citrus here
Jesus christ amen brother people wear Mr out
Raised beds are almost inpossible to fill
What do you mean?
@@TheMillennialGardener too much soil
@@AM-lz2jr hugelkulture helps!!!
@@jujube2407 I'm talking a simple 6 inch raised bed, lol.
@@AM-lz2jr yup... toss some cardboard in the bottom some sticks and maybe a few chunks if logs or scrap woid...I have see people toss crushed waterbottlws too... I have 8 20 gallon totes, a 5 by 2 foot (8 inch deep) and a few pots...it cost me less than $50 to fill using equal parts peat, and top soil with compost free from the township... also once you fill it... you just need an inexpensive amendment each year after...
What about Pizza the Hut?
His Schwartz isn't big enough.
Great explanations. Unfortunately the insane people will be inscenced. Kind of like the trump thing.
I know it's a pretty polarizing topic, but I wanted to weigh in on my perspective. If you can get natural, rot resistant wood for a good price, I say do it, but don't disparage people for using pressure treated lumber because the science isn't there to show it's harmful. The synthetic fertilizers are a little more of a gray area, but I think a lot of the problems come from overuse. They should be used as needed, where needed and not just pumped into your soil constantly.
You cannot come to the conclusion that the plants cannot poison you because the soil is non toxic because you can’t see it because the plants are not sick from negative effects of the soil. This is testable with a control group of plants in an untreated box, perhaps the plants would look the same perhaps they taste different, perhaps the plant in the treated box is toxic, but is not visible from outside appearances but will be toxic to bees. Also you have no idea the capacity of each plant to hold a particular toxin. There are hundreds if not thousands of toxic plants that grow in that same garden soil and anobolize poison from the non toxic soil and appear healthy, and we cannot assume that a given plant could not react differently when exposed to unnatural chemicals. While I think your hypothesis is likely correct, you are making a boatload of assumptions.
Most people who evoke the term salts cant define it.
I believe that is the case with both synthetic fertilizers and pressure treated lumber. I require a reason beyond "because they're chemicals." Everything is a chemical, including things like linseed oil and organic fertilizers. I need to see evidence that it's a harmful chemical, and I don't believe the science shows that.
5:45 You are what you eat... was a lie?
I think that's more of a metaphor 😁