The Right Way To Easily Clean And Sharpen Gardening Shears

Garden shears are essential workhorses for any gardener. On the list of important landscaping tools, they're arguably at the top. Shears aren't just useful for cutting fresh flowers and deadheading spent ones, either; they're also great for pruning smaller branches. Of course, to be able to do all of these tasks, shears need to be kept in good condition, and should be regularly cleaned and sharpened so that your gardening tasks are easier to manage.

Dull and dirty shears aren't just more difficult to use, however. When they're dull, it increases the chance that they may injure their user, but they can also be bad for your garden. Blunted shears tend to crush stems and branches instead of cutting cleanly, increasing the damage to the plant — which can be especially problematic if you're pruning to increase growth. Shears can also potentially pass infections from plant to plant if they aren't being actively disinfected. 

Luckily, cleaning and sharpening garden shears isn't a difficult process. You should deep clean your pruning scissors twice or more per gardening season by disassembling them and scrubbing them down, followed by a good sharpening process with a file or whetstone.

Clean shears are essential for keeping your garden healthy. You should, at minimum, clean your shears at least once a year, usually after the gardening season, as well as after pruning any plants you suspect to have infections. Many people also opt to sanitize their shears in between pruning each plant, especially if they are working with roses. In fact, if you're working with an infected rose bush, you may even need to sanitize your shears between each cut. This should prevent the shears from carrying infections between the plants or even between different parts of the same plant.

If possible, disassemble your shears to wash them. Begin by brushing off any dirt or plant matter clinging to the blades. Then, dip the garden shears in a bucket of soapy water, and give them a good scrub using a sponge. Be sure to dry your shears thoroughly to avoid rust. Once your tools appear clean, you can wipe them with rubbing alcohol to ensure your pruning shears are sterilized as well.

Of course, even if your shears are perfectly cleaned and sanitized, they can still cause damage in the garden if they aren't sharp. Fortunately, if you use your garden scissors correctly and don't try to use them to cut branches that are too large, they should only need to be sharpened a few times a year. You can sharpen your clippers or gardening shears using either a whetstone or a file. 

Begin with clean shears, and disassemble them if possible — this process is why it's a good idea to deep clean and sharpen at the same time. Then, if using a diamond file, repeatedly bring the file across the blade edge at about a 10- to 20-degree angle. If using a whetstone, bring the blade of the shears across the whetstone at a similar angle. Regardless of whether you use a file or a whetstone, it's important to keep your sharpening tool damp while working. 

Once the shear's cutting edge is sharp, pass the back side of the blade over the sharpening tool once or twice as well, to remove any burrs that may have formed. After you're done sharpening your gardening shears, be sure to oil them with a silicone-based lubricant. Then you can reassemble your garden shears and get back to gardening.