Tool Maintenance

Josh says, "Good tools really are a gardeners' best friend. They make our working lives so much easier, and if we look after them, they're safer to use, they reduce the chance of spreading diseases amongst plants, and of course if cared for correctly, they'll last for years."

Loppers: Keep clean, sharp and dry. Even if they've been a bit neglected, you can bring them back into shape. Rub the cutting surfaces with a scourer dabbed in methylated spirits to remove any gummy sap and flecks of rust. After wiping dry it's ready to be sharpened. Bypass cutters like this are easily sharpened by running a sharpening stone along the cambered blade edge. To finish, wipe it over with an oily rag to prevent it from rusting.

Secateurs: It's a good idea to wipe the secateurs down with warm, soapy water after each pruning session to keep them nice and clean. Then rub the blades with vegetable oil to prevent them from rusting. This is particularly important when pruning plants with high sap content because the sap can be quite corrosive. If the blade seems blunt, run a sharpening stone over it. A stone like this costs about ten dollars and a light sharpening is simple to do. Sometimes the blades can be nicked or bent, but with good secateurs it should be easy enough to dismantle them and replace the blade. Remove the top nut and undo the bolt at the bottom, and the secateurs will fall apart. The damaged blade is easily lifted off. Give the secateurs a good clean with soapy water and oil them, not forgetting the spring. Throw away the old blade and fit the new one into the slot on the handle and then bolt the two halves together. Fit the spring, and your blunt, rusty secateurs are now cutting as sharply as new.

Pruning Saws: Keep clean with a nailbrush. Dip it into bleach or tea tree oil to sterilise it before pruning prize plants or if you suspect a plant is diseased.

Short-Handled Spades: Great for cutting into roots and dividing up plants, use an axe sharpening stone to maintain its sharp-edged blade. Sand down the old handle to remove splinters and oil it with a mix of linseed oil and turpentine to help preserve the wood.

Planting Spade: To prevent it from rusting, make up an oily sand mix by adding 'bricky' sand and vegetable oil into a bucket and stirring it up. Sliding the spade in and out of that mixture will wipe off any muck and most importantly, coat the blade with a fine layer of oil to prevent it from rusting.

Source:www.abc.net au