I get the caution around treated lumber, but honestly, I've used it around my raised beds for a couple years now and haven't noticed any issues. Maybe I'm just lucky—or my carrots are secretly plotting revenge—but I think the newer treated stuff is way safer than it used to be. Totally with you on the drainage though; learned that lesson the hard way after a mini swamp formed in my yard last spring...
I've had similar luck with treated lumber—built a retaining wall about five years ago, and the plants nearby are thriving. But yeah, drainage is key... learned that after my tenants called about a mysterious backyard pond forming overnight. Roots plus standing water equals nightmare repairs.
"Roots plus standing water equals nightmare repairs."
Yeah, learned that lesson the hard way myself. We built raised garden beds using treated lumber about three years ago, and I made the rookie mistake of not accounting enough for drainage. Cue heavy rain season and suddenly my veggie beds were mini-swamps overnight... roots rotted, veggies drowned, total mess. Ended up drilling extra drainage holes and layering gravel underneath—made a huge difference. Glad your retaining wall's holding up nicely though, sounds like you nailed it.
Yeah, drainage is definitely key—seen way too many setups fail because folks underestimate how aggressive roots can get when there's standing water. Gravel's a solid fix, but I'd also recommend laying down some geotextile fabric underneath. It lets water through but keeps roots from creeping up into your beds. Learned this trick after dealing with a client's patio disaster... roots busted right through the pavers. Glad you got yours sorted before it got worse.
"roots busted right through the pavers."
Man, I feel this. When we moved into our first house, the previous owners had planted this gorgeous maple way too close to the driveway. Thought it looked great until the roots started cracking the concrete... ended up costing us a small fortune to fix. Wish I'd known about that geotextile fabric trick earlier—sounds like you saved yourself a headache there. Glad you caught it early enough!
