Clean, Sharpen and Store Your Garden Tools This October and They'll Last 30 Years, by Garden Sage on YouTube. 21 min 28 s.
- Video length
- 21 min 28 s
- Time to do it
- 2 hours
- Difficulty
- Easy
- Steps
- 9
What you need
Steps
Scrape off caked soil from every spade, hoe and fork with a stiff brush or a piece of wood. Knock soil out of the crevices where the blade meets the handle.
Wash the tools in clean water and dry them straight away with a rag. Wet steel rusts overnight, so never leave them to air dry.
Brush light rust off with a wire brush. For heavy rust, soak the metal overnight in white vinegar, then neutralise it with a paste of baking soda and water and dry well.
Sharpen spades and hoes with a file, following the existing bevel. Work at about 45 degrees for spades and 30 to 40 degrees for hoes, pushing the file away from the edge.
Sharpen pruner blades at 20 to 25 degrees along the existing bevel. File only the bevelled side and leave the flat side alone.
Wipe pruner blades with 70% rubbing alcohol before and after sharpening. This stops fire blight and canker spreading from one plant to the next.
Oil the metal surfaces with a thin coat of oil or light grease. Give wooden handles two or three coats of boiled linseed oil, letting each coat soak in.
Drain hoses and sprayers completely, and empty or stabilise the fuel in your mower. Store mower and tool batteries at about half charge, indoors and away from frost.
Hang everything off the floor on hooks or a rack, not on concrete. Write a short list of tools that need repair or replacing before spring.
Tips and common mistakes
Keep a bucket of oily sand by the shed door and plunge clean tools into it after each use.
File along the existing bevel instead of creating a new angle, or you will blunt the blade faster.
Never store tools with soil still on them, since soil holds water against the steel and starts rust.
Wear gloves when sharpening and keep the file away from your fingers, as fresh edges cut easily.
Questions
Can I use vinegar on all rusty tools?
Vinegar works well on steel blades and forged heads. Keep it off painted finishes and wooden handles, and always neutralise with baking soda and dry the metal afterwards.
How often should I oil wooden handles?
Once a year in autumn is enough for most tools. Very dry handles may take two or three coats, but let each coat dry before adding the next.
Do I need to sharpen pruners every year?
Yes, a yearly sharpen keeps cuts clean. A clean cut heals faster and lowers the risk of disease getting into the plant.
This guide was drafted from the video's details and general task knowledge. It has not been checked against the full video. Check the video and relevant product instructions before following a procedure. Report a correction.
