GronomicsCedar Garden Bed Oil - 1 Quart

This spring I bought a raised Gronomics garden for my wife at a local hardware store (Calif). The unit was outside and last year's stock. It was unfinished, grey, and weathered with some cracking. It was a gift so I decided to bring it back to life. I sanded the whole thing with a small Makita hand sander. I filled cracks with wood putty and re-sanded. (This sounds like a lot of work, but wasn't.) I used a tack cloth after sanding, but the Oil recommended washing it with a diluted soapy water wash, so I did that. I was surprised how much dirt and grime still came off. Rinsed with garden hose. The weather was perfect: 80's and light wind. After it dried I applied the Cedar Oil, starting with a paint applicator sponge, but shifted to a 2" nylon brush. Latex gloves are good to use. I found the brush quicker, easier, less messy (no drop cloth used), and could tuck into corners and slots where a sponge couldn't go. The smell was pleasant, but it was outside. It dried overnight outside and applied another coat the next morning. The first application used about 1/2 can, soaked in a lot, but the second used far less. I did all surfaces: inside bed, outside, legs, but not the underbelly. After the second application (brush) I have about 1/3 can left, probably enough for the next application. This is interesting stuff: it has the consistency of olive oil, but it crystallizes as it dries and seals the wood. From what others say I should get a year out of it in California. BTW I didn't sand the inside of the bed, weathered and grey, but applied the Oil; afterward, the inside looked pretty good, too. Cosmetically, sand weathered wood to get a nice look, golden and good as new. I'm tempted to apply some Thompson's Water Seal to the legs and outer sides (not in the bed), but I'll see how it goes. (Have decided against that.) If you're on the fence about buying the Cedar Oil with a new Gronomics cedar bed or box, I would definitely encourage you to buy the oil. With new wood, it will be an easy application. It "feeds" the wood and keeps it from splitting and cracking; it's not just cosmetic. These gardens and beds are nice, but pricey. I think the Cedar Oil is worth the cost for the wood's protection. It's easy to apply, good looking, and SAFE for veggies you plant (unlike Copper-Green, for example). If you are not a DIY person I think buying a 'finished' elevated garden (about $40 more) is worth the extra cost. Seeing how the unfinished wood weathered, I would do SOMETHING to protect it even if you don't care how it looks. BTW I tried hot water and soap to clean the brush, but I think it is a 'dedicated' cedar oil brush now (a $5 nylon brush was about right). Other stuff, including me, cleaned up fine with soap and water.JUNE 9, 2014. Only a couple weeks later so no info on long-term wear, but the Cedar Oil has sealed the wood nicely. It leaves a waterproof seal (water beads up); no need for other water seal products. The cedar bed looks great - brand new standing in the sun. BTW the nylon paint brush I used [and recommend] dried to a 'brick' in spite of cleaning it thoroughly with soap and water and wrapping in plastic wrap. Maybe a petroleum based spirits product will cut the oil, but I saw no such instructions. Soap and water cleaning was OK for overnight, but not for preserving the brush long-term. For $5 it was easy to toss the brush; I'll buy another next year.

Although you may find its price and application process a bit frustrating, this Gronomics product is a prudent choice for at least two important reasons.* It is a blend of vegetable and citrus oils, all of which are safe if they come in contact with your food. Until I found out about this product, I'd resigned myself to the "gently weathered" look for all of our wooden planting barrels and raised beds. This healthy choice led to periodic and perennial frustration, because between sun and rain and year-round use, our tubs and beds took a beating that required repair and replacement.* This product is developed and distributed by the manufacturer of a line of upscale cedar garden planters. Thus, it stands to reason that this formula has been created to add to the appearance and performance of cedar planters and tested to ensure that it does provide protection and does not have long-term negative effects on the wood.Application is pretty straightforward, as long as you budget for sufficient time and patience and have a couple of basic tools on hand. The tools I used were a sturdy nylon brush, a large rectangular plastic food container (similar to the semi-disposable Ziploc containers), and a 3-inch paint roller. Because the container and the roller sleeve came in contact with the Gronomics oil, I wanted to use items I could dry and discard safely and following combustibility guidelines. Here's how I prepped and treated a new raised Gronomics bed and a relatively new barrel planter.On the first day, I made a weak solution of Dawn dishwashing liquid and water, and used a sturdy nylon brush with grip handle to scrub my newly assembled Gronomics planting bed. I also emptied and hosed out my barrel planter, and took the extra step of rinsing the interior with boiling water before scrubbing the exterior with the soapy solution. I then rinsed both planters with a pressure washer to ensure all soap residue was removed.On the second day, working in a shaded area, I poured about an inch of oil into the food container and dipped my paint roller into it. I applied two light coats rather than a single heavy coat to reduce drips and spills. I also portioned out relatively small amounts of oil to avoid wastage; same for using a roller with relatively low nap.I applied a coat to the inside of the Gronomics bed, just below the level to which I planned to fill it with dirt. However, I left the interior of my barrel untreated so I would be able to compare its rate of weathering to that of the treated exterior of the barrel.

Time will tell if it works…

So, I slapped this on two Gronomics elevated garden beds I had purchased - (and I paid app. $124 each via Home Depot w. free shipping earlier in the summer - and now I see the same being sold as high as $300 for each *meh) - anyway - it was raining so I was slapping this on all the pieces, in the house...from reading books re "oil finishes" basically the idea is to have a "film" and renew as needed. So my attitude was to pretty much saturate the wood, because in a year or so, I'm gonna be re-oiling anyway.Am sure this product is fine - it smelled good, and since I had the "rustic, infinished" beds the wood was just "drinking" this in. I noticed water beading up right away the first rain. Dropping a star because of the cost - assuming a liberal application, which I did, I barely eeked out enough of one can to do the two 3 x 2' elevated beds. IMO, needing - at least for a first assembly - quite a lot. I actually grabbed some vegetable oil from the kitchen to finish soaking my wood - might have been peanut oil...am not fussy. A lot of vegetable oils never dry, but what do I care if the legs of the beds stay sticky?Anyway, for future oilings in my un-fussy situation think I am gonna try butcher block oil, which is cheaper and also food-safe. Or just plain ol' mineral oil. Maybe I'm wrong, but it's just too painful paying $30 a can. But for what is is, the product seems fine, over a few months my elevated beds seem to be holding up well in heat and humidity, w. no discoloring or graying.

I use this oil every year or two on my cedar raised beds. I have 10 large (4x8) and 2 smaller (2x8) raised beds and this can is enough to do them all. My raised beds are 10 years old this year and the wood is in good shape. This just helps to prevent them drying out and splitting or cracking from age. I live in Alberta, Canada and it is VERY dry. We went with cedar so that we wouldnt have to replace them every few years due to rot and I feel like this oil helps a lot. I grow vegetables in my raised beds and dont want to risk contaminating my garden with chemicals so I really appreciate that it is made of citrus and all natural vegetable oils. Great product.

Nice to have a natural oil made for wooden garden beds. Great idea, thanks