These days you can't go anywhere without hearing about hormone-free this and antibiotic-free this. And the term organic is such a hot button word that it gets tossed around freely. But sometimes you're not getting what you think you are.
Companies have a certain amount of leeway when it comes to dubbing things organic when in facts their practices may not be completely eco-friendly. Save yourself the confusion while saving some money by keeping a railing planter box at home and growing your own.
The deck railing planter box is a slender rectangular planter that's meant to fit onto a deck railing, but works just as well freestanding on decks or on the ground. Commonly, they are made out of wood and resin.
If you want to be really eco-friendly, look for wood manufacturers who use green practices, such as replanting and using alternative sources of energy. Likewise, if you go with a synthetic material like poly plastics, try to buy recycled. It will save the world some extra trash in the landfill.
A railing planter box allows you to grow what you want where you want. You control everything, from plants to soils, to water and amount of sunlight. These compact boxes are easy to move around, unlike a typical garden.
Another problem with the average garden is contaminants that exist both in water supply and soil. Soil pollutants seep into your backyard from various sources and can contain harmful chemicals, including petroleum hydrocarbons, solvents, pesticides, lead and other heavy metals. Raw sewage and nearby landfills also contribute to the problem. Something like battery acid can stay in
the soil for tremendously long periods of time.
Since plants suck up nutrients and particles from the soil through their roots, it's only natural that they would also suck up any pollutant in the soil that's small enough. That means you end up eating the vegetables and herbs containing whatever pollutants were there. A railing planter box is nice then, because you put in the soil yourself, and no outside contaminants can get in.
A second concern is polluted water. Though rainwater is relatively pure there is still a chance that might contain some level of acidity. The best way to test this is using litmus paper. But while rainwater is pretty much harmless, water pollution from sewage, urban runoff and more is a very real problem. When water hits the ground, it puts up whatever particles and liquids we leave over as a byproduct of industrialization.
This includes nothing short of gasoline, motor oil, trash, fertilizers and pesticides. Heavy metals, like zinc, copper and nickel along with fossils fuels are also found in the water content. All of these are toxic to drink, so why allow your plants to drink it? Even if your own backyard is free of contaminants, that won't stop soil and water that is contaminated from seeping into your area.
A railing planter box also lets you control water, because you hydrate plants yourself. You can even use filtered water if you're worried about the content of your tap water. Also, you can move plants under a shelter or indoors when it rains if you are concerned about the acidic levels of your rainwater.
Author Resource:-
Todd Arend is a freelance writing professional whose expertise covers a variety of areas, including patio and backyard furniture, landscaping and design. He regularly writes about Railing Planter Box and Window Planters.
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