At Hales, we offer both green and brown treated timber. However, it’s important to know the difference and which Is most suitable for your gardening project. Here is a short guide to timber colours and treatments.

Green Timber:

Green timber has a naturally pale, wooden colour that blends perfectly with outdoor environments with a slight green tint caused by the pressure-treating process. The pressure treatment process is essential to ensure our timber products have a long and low maintenance service life and are fully protected against wood decay and insect attack.  The chemicals used in pressure treatment are copper based which reacts with both the sap of the timber and the air and then oxidises, creating green flecks on the surface. Although this is not a decorative finish and you can stain or paint your timber once installed, it is perfectly fine to install your timber straight after purchase with no further finish however this is down to personal preference of ascetics.

Brown Timber:

Brown timber is a darker colour which goes through the same pressure treated process as green but an additional dye is added to the treatment to provide a chestnut brown wood appearance.

What colour to choose?

Ultimately, the choose between these two colours depends on personal preference. We stock a wide range of green timber as this is the most popular option and a more limited selection of brown timber. However, you can order any of our timber to be treated brown and we will get this done ready to collect the very next day.