How should one sterilize garden tools

In order to prevent spread of disease - in my case, possible transmission of Hosta Virus X - it is recommended to "sterilize" tools - clippers, spades, etc. between use. But so far I have not been able to find any step by step instructions on how best to do this.

I plan to use bleach because it's readily available and cheap. But what is the recommended strength of the solution? How long should implements be kept in the bleach solution?

Thanks for your help.

Ann

10% bleach solution should take care of just about anything...everyone else?

pam

That's about the same percentage I use... maybe a little more because I pour the bleach in a bucket of water without measuring. When pruning, I take the bucket with me and dip before every cut and one last time before I lay them out to dry. I don't soak them for any length of time because the dip seems adequate. I also dip all pots that I reuse for other plants.

I have also sprayed tools with Lysol when I was too lazy to drag a bucket of bleach around with me. Come to think of it, I've also washed tools with Betadyne surgical scrub that I had laying around here. I'd also be interested in knowing what other people are using. It's not like most of us have access to an autoclave.

i spray my tools with Lysol. i keep a can in my "yard wagon". if i'm cutting something diseased or with an especially nasty pest on it, i pour some straight bleach on them after i cut. overkill probably, but i'm lazy.

In terms of sterlizing, all the articles that I have read by fungus specialists ( sorry-early am and haven't had enough coffee! lol can't remember their title) say to soak the objects for at least 10 mins to kill all the spores. Just remember that a bleach solution is only effective for 2 hrs-after that it begins to break down and lose its effectiveness. I use a 1:10 ratio.

Thanks. Looks like 1:10, let them soak for awhile and don't keep the solution too long should do it. Now all I need is a break in the rain.

Ann

I keep my Clorox in a spray bottle. Chlorine will vaporize quickly and I don't like to keep mixing it up. Many viruses are not killed with quaternary hydrocarbons (Lysol etc) in our veterinary practices. Bleach is very effective against all so that is why I use it in my garden.

I use straight rubbing alcohol. It's not so hard on the tools, and does the job. And I don't have to mix it.

bleach will eat you tools away . After you clean your tools , put a nail in the bleach and in a couple of days it's gone .
I wipe my tools down with straight bleach /or spray if pruning different plants .
When done I spray with WD-40 , OR SOME OTHER OIL . I don't like rusty tools .
- not the extra white or super whatever - they have lye in them .

Amen to bleach causing Oxidation. But there is no better antiviral, antifungal, and antibiotic. Good point tonyjr! I use Clipper aid it smells better thank WD 40. My tools are usually discount clearance types. That way they are gone when the rust starts. Actually I have a collection of garden tools hanging from my open celing in our basement. I sit down there in the winter remembering breaking the shovels, dulling the clippers, and disposing of the useless bad idea I bought on clearance.

Mebbee I'll use the cheap spade I bought to chip ice off the driveway rather than my good one when I'm transplanting Hostas or anything that I'm super worried about sterilizing.

Ann

I get the best, because it is too much work, and too much pain to use something that isn't the best. And the cheapies just don't last. In the long run, I am saving money, blisters and shooting pains up my arm. I can take them apart, hone them, oil them, put them back together, and they are like new. I couldn't prune for over two years because of severe tendonitis (so-called tennis elbow - really pruner's elbow!) and that was miserable. So I am very careful not to overdo, and to have the best and sharpest tool possible. I only have one pruner, and DH better not ever touch it!

My problem is the cost up front and when the fiberglass handle breaks quicker than the cheap wooden one I'm upset and throw things. Besides the motif of my basement is "broken cheap tools".

LOL To each his own. Mine is Felco #12.
CJ

I totally agree about quality, but I also like to look after quality tools. I also have a Felco pruner - the smallest one. And my regular spade is very high quality - would prefer not to soak it in bleach. But for chipping ice off the driveway in winter, the blade will eventually be ruined; so a cheap one fits the bill. All we need is something thin enough and sturdy enough to get under the ice. Modern plastic shovesl don't work. Ann

When soaking gardening instruments in bleach-you only have to soak for about 10 min and you can immediately rinse well afterwards....I don't think this will hurt any tool. If you know that you don;t have a fungus, I wouldn't sterlize tools.

I sterilize only for transplanting new hostas since Hosta Virus X can be spread eaily from one plant to another and since it doesn't show symptoms for a couple of years in some cases. If I have purchased them from a source I've not used before, I'd rather treat them with caution than infect many of my other hostas.

Ann