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what makes black locust last so long? Is it safe for gardens? | (Read 615 times) |
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paul wheaton
Administrator
Posts: 1343
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May 14, 2007, 01:03:27 PM |
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When folks ask me about what to use for a raised bed border, I always
say "stone". And if that is in short supply, I have a long list of
what not to use: railroad ties, treated wood, cedar, black walnut
.... and then there is the mystery jewel .... black locust. It
lasts so long that farmers called it "stone wood". What makes it
last? Is it safe for use in a garden?
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Toby Hemenway
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Posts: 18
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May 07, 2008, 12:12:16 PM |
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Black locust is at least as long lasting in the ground as redwood. It contains high concentrations (up to 4% by dry weight, which is a lot!) of an anti-fungal compound called taxifolin, plus flavonoids that also inhibit rot. I haven't seen evidence that this stuff leaches from the wood in harmful amounts, so I'd be comfortable using it in a garden. I've read that if children chew the bark it makes their tongue burn, but not much more than that. I'll bet redwood or cedar bark isn't exactly delicious either. The challenge would be finding enough lumber for a raised bed.
I've had solid-looking posts of black locust pointed out to me that were installed by the owner's grandfather 60 years before. The old story is that you put posts in the ground for 40 years, and then pull them out and put the other end in the ground for another 40. The trees do tend to sucker when they're cut, which may or may not be a problem--that's coppicing. The leaves are said to be good fodder, and of course, it's a nitrogen fixer. What's not to like?
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paul wheaton
Administrator
Posts: 1343
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May 08, 2008, 10:03:23 AM |
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My current raised beds are black locust. Not lumber, but logs and branches from where a neighbor took down their tree.
So what you are saying is that black locust contains a lot of a strong, natural, fungicide? But that it is pretty tightly locked up inside of the wood, so that it won't make the growies in the raised bed sad?
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