How to Use Plastic Wood for Planting

Recycling means to use old things to create something new. Plastic bottles, toys and even car parts can be taken to a recycling center, melted down and formed into blocks that manufacturers can use to make new products. One industry that has benefited from this process is the plastic lumber industry. Plastic lumber can be used to construct nearly anything that wood lumber is used to make. Using timber to build a raised flower bed means that the wood is constantly exposed to moisture and decay. Plastic lumber can be used without these worries.

Things You'll Need

Stakes
String
Shovel
Wheelbarrow
Plastic boards (4-by-4 inches by 8 feet)
Hacksaw
Drill with 5/8 bit
Galvanized butterfly anchor bolts

Screwdriver
Gravel
Potting soil
Epoxy resin
4-by-4 inch plastic caps
Work gloves
Safety glasses

Instructions

- 1
  Mark out the area where you wish to locate the raised bed. Set stakes into the four corners of the proposed area, and run string along the perimeter. This will provide a guideline for your work.
- 2
  Remove at least 2 inches of turf from the planting area with your shovel. Push the tip of the shovel blade into the ground and remove any plants, including roots. Haul off the turf with your wheelbarrow.
- 3
  Remove the stakes and string.
- 4
  Encircle the interior of the dug-out area with plastic 4-by-4-inch boards. Cut the plastic boards to size as necessary with your hacksaw.
- 5
  Lay a second layer of plastic boards on top of the first. Stagger the breaks between boards from one layer to the next so that no two breaks line up. Overlap the corners so that they lock together.
- 6
  Drill through the tops and bottoms of the top boards and the top layer of the bottom boards. Drill through the boards every 18 inches around your planting area; hold the boards firmly to keep the holes aligned.
- 7
  Push a butterfly bolt through each of the holes. Be sure that each bolt goes completely through the top board and exits into the top side of the bottom board. Push the bolts in until you hear the butterfly nut pop open inside the bottom board. Tighten the anchor bolts with your screwdriver.
- 8
  Fill the planting area with 2 inches of gravel to help with drainage.
- 9
  Fill the enclosure with potting soil to complete your planting area.

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