Glad to know this in Pruner Care and Maintenance

By Gymgirl
March 30, 2012

To avoid spreading disease, soak your garden pruners in a solution of bleach (at a ratio of 1 part bleach to 10 parts water) in between your cuttings, and after each use. Then rinse, dry, and spray with some WD-40. They'll be good as new, every time you reach for them!

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Aguane

Oct 22, 2011 7:59 PM CST

Thread OP

Name: Susie
Phoenix AZ (Zone 9a)
Southwest Gardening~ moderator/ATP.

I'm so glad you posted this tip, gymgirl.

I can't tell you how many times I gone out to trim roses and bushes and thought "I'd better clean these clippers".

It would have been so easy to look it up on the Web to finally clean them and stop this haunting thought. But, I never looked it up.

Now, I find the answer / formula on All Things Plants!

“Don't give up too quickly"... unknown, I heard it somewhere.
~ All Things Plants, SOUTHWEST GARDENING ~Cubits.org ENERGY & POWER

| @Aguane | Post #168296 (1)

Paul2032

Oct 23, 2011 11:00 PM CST

Name: Paul
Utah (Zone 5b)
Grandchildren are my greatest joy.

I use Clorox Spray Cleaner on my pruners when trimming hosta but haven't worried about roses. I spray them and just wipe off. When I'm done I rinse them off and dry them and occasionally oil. My favorites pruners are probably 30 years old. I've bought several newer ones but always go back to my old favorites. One year I took them to a Christmas workshop held by a club I belonged to. I didn't get home with them and felt bad. The next year when we held the workshop and unpacked the supplies they were there.

Paul Smith Pleasant Grove, Utah

| @Paul2032 | Post #168716 (2)

canadanna

Oct 24, 2011 7:26 AM CST

Name: Anna
North Texas (Zone 8a)

Good idea to use clorox. Gymgirl, do you keep a sprayer with the solution by your side? I think that would be the only way I could keep up that!

| @canadanna | Post #168790 (3)

Gymgirl

Oct 24, 2011 9:30 AM CST

Name: Linda
SE Houston, Tx. (Hobby) (Zone 9a)
"Godspeed, & Good Harvest!"

I usually fill a tall plastic tub and keep it on the table when I'm puttering around with pruning. I sit the pruners in the tub between cuttings. Then, clean and oil them before putting them away for next time.

Anyone know where I can get the Coronas? HD stopped selling them. They had the cushioned red handles, and came in a pack with a large pruner and a bonus snipper for ~$12.

My Blog: Fall/Winter 2011 Veggie Garden
My Cubits: Bucket Gardening! **Beginner Vegetable Growers **Growing Veggies By Zone **

| @Gymgirl | Post #168842 (4)

CindiKS

Mar 29, 2012 6:19 PM CST

Name: Cindi
Wichita, Kansas (Zone 7a)

Amazon carries Coronas. (And Felcos...)

Remember that children, marriages, and flower gardens reflect the kind of care they get.
H. Jackson Brown, Jr.

| @CindiKS | Post #234303 (5)

steve_mass

Apr 2, 2012 5:37 AM CST

Name: Steve
Millbury, MA (Zone 5b)

Bleach can be dangerous. I use Lysol virus killing wipes to clean my pruners in between working on different plants. I just carry a container of them in my tool bucket.

| @steve_mass | Post #236152 (6)

Gymgirl

Jul 9, 2012 7:53 AM CST

Name: Linda
SE Houston, Tx. (Hobby) (Zone 9a)
"Godspeed, & Good Harvest!"

Steve_mass,

I agree, bleach CAN be dangerous, depending on how much of it you're using for this disinfectant purpose.

A 9:1 ratio of water to bleach can be found on gardening forums all over. I haven't lost a plant yet using this formula.

Hugs!

Linda

My Blog: Fall/Winter 2011 Veggie Garden
My Cubits: Bucket Gardening! **Beginner Vegetable Growers **Growing Veggies By Zone **

| @Gymgirl | Post #283971 (7)

paulgrow

Feb 3, 2013 10:59 AM CST

Name: Paul
Allen Park, MI (Zone 6a)

Bleach is no longer recommended to sterilize pruners.
Chlorine is an oxidizing agent that damages
metal.
Recommended product to sterilize pruners

3. Rubbing alcohol
2. Listerine
1. Lysol Spray
These will all get the job done without damaging pruners.

Gardening is cheaper than therapy and you get tomatoes. ~Author Unknown

| @paulgrow | Post #354761 (8)

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Pruner Care and Maintenance

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Pruner Care and Maintenance Glad to know this

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Pruner Care and Maintenance

Glad to know this