I'll be constructing some garden steps out of 4x6 or 6x6 PT lumber for our sloped backyard later this summer. My plan was to tie them to one another and into the ground with rebar. I've seen it done with large screws as well but the rebar seems to accomplish the two functions with one fastener (joining steps to one another as well as anchoring in the ground).
However, while we were strolling through the local botanical gardens, I noticed some of their timber steps constructed in a slightly different manner - instead of rebar they had used pipe - around 1" diameter. I suppose this would provide a little bit of drainage (?), but other than that I couldn't really figure out why it would be preferable over rebar. Seems it would also eventually fill with dirt and debris.
Can anyone enlighten me?