We have an interior table we stuck outside because we didn't need it and used it for July 4 last year and then didn't have anywhere else to put it. It was made from edge-glued boards and they of course warped and it's come apart.

So I'm going to do this properly and make a new tabletop out of at least decent wood and seal it correctly.

Must I buy kiln-dried wood if I'm going to seal it?

The plan is to edge join/glue three 1"x1'x5' boards, I imagine S4S rather than planing it myself (don't want to buy a planer just yet). I've made pressure bars and have I beam clamps, so I feel confident I'll get the edges made right.

Then I plan to round the corners with a router and seal it, but since this is an exterior table we'll only use intermittently, I'd like to make it look nice but I don't need to go all out on expensive mahogany or anything (right now poplar seems to be in the right price point for me—cheap hardwood, good for practicing joinery, gluing, sealing, and routing). I just want to make sure I don't spend money on kiln-dried wood if I don't need it.

Thanks! I will definitely post pictures when I'm done, simple and unimpressive project though it may be.

Edit I should probably point out that I live in Zone Swamp Butt, Texas, where currently it is 90 F and relatively humidity is 40%, but the past week that has fluctuated between 40% and 100%. So I probably can't air dry the wood.