Daily gardening tip · Northern hemisphere · Monday 9 November 2026
Clean Pruners with Alcohol to Prevent Disease
Keeping your hand pruners clean between uses stops plant diseases from spreading around your garden.
5 minuteseasytools
Scrape away any thick crusts of dirt or sap from the blades using a stiff brush.
Pour a small amount of isopropyl alcohol onto a clean rag or cotton pad.
Wipe down both sides of the blades, wiping from the back of the blade toward the sharp edge for safety.
Allow the alcohol to air-dry completely, which takes less than a minute.
Apply a drop of light machine oil to the pivot point to keep the mechanism moving smoothly.
Why it works
Sticky sap harbors bacteria and fungal spores that easily transfer from a sick plant to a healthy one during pruning. Isopropyl alcohol dissolves tough resin and kills plant pathogens instantly, while evaporating quickly so it will not rust the metal blades.
A stemless or very short-stemmed succulent plant forming rosettes of thick, fleshy, spear-shaped, green to grey-green leaves. Renowned for the clear gel inside its leaves, widely utilized for medicinal and cosmetic purposes across cultures.
Indian botanist Panchanan Maheshwari was born on 9 November 1904. He developed groundbreaking techniques for fertilizing flowering plants in test tubes. His research advanced plant embryology and helped scientists create new crop hybrids.
