Soft wood for a raised vegetable patch

[luckystrike]

I'm in the process of building a raised vegetable patch out of 8x2 (200x50mm) softwood planks.

Do I NEED to stain or seal them? I'd rather not, as I don't want to have to go down the route have having to redecorate them every year?

[carmalee]

not too sure that untreated soft wood is going to stand up the weather and to being buried in earth without rotting.

[redman41]

Any untreated wood will rot quite quickly when used this way as the wetness of the ground will impregnate it.
My Grandfather used to use old Railway sleepers for raised Beds and lasted for Years.
Any Wood that you use should be treated beforehand.

[jomifl]

They will rot out in a few years(personal experience) unless you use tannelised timber, but i can't see them lasting more than about ten years, Try getting hold of condemned scaffold planks, they don't have as many knots as cheap timber and have probably been treated with preservative. Railway sleepers will last for years but might not be cheap depending on where you live.

[RAV1D]

For those who said to use other wood like railway sleepers ext,The question said that they have already have the wood so It best just to stain them because wood will rot against damp soil!