I have used treated lumber years ago around my plants, never killed off any plants. I don't think that was ever the concern, more that pets would chew on it or environmental issues. Wouldn't want to use it around your vegetable garden, although, personally, I doubt if anything would be absorbed into vegetable plants over the course of a summer. Of course, my understanding now is that treated lumber no longer contains arsenic unless you have some stored that you bought years ago. I still wouldn't use the new stuff around food plants, but I try to be as organic as possible with my veggies, just in case.

Thanks for the feedback, Nancy.

I do have one old raised bed from decades ago using treated railroad ties. It has a sheared Boxwood in it and has never been troubled by any toxicity from the ties. I can only echo Nancy, in as much as the more recent landscape timbers are not treated with anything harmful. We have our herbs in them and are of an age that I seriously doubt there has been toxicity leaching into our soil. I'd be more worried about being killed in a car accident going to buy the landscape timbers then I would of the timbers themselves........Maryl