Winter care for garden tools

Gardens need to be prepared for the winter months before the first frost. This involves cutting back trees, pruning hedges, moving flower pots and garden furniture into storage, and covering beds with leaves and branches to protect the plants from the wind and rain. And it is just as important to take good care of the trusty tools used in the garden, so they can be put to use again the following year.

People rely on their tools to help them out in their gardens for months and months of the year. Without them, they would not be able to achieve the precise trim, proper watering or loosened soil they need. Once the temperatures start to drop, it is time for the tools to get the attention they deserve in the form of cleaning, maintenance and maybe even repairs where necessary. Taking care of things properly can help make them last longer, ensuring they are as efficient as they were when they were brand new for years to come.


Clean and sharp in storage

Gardeners should set aside some time to give their pruners, shovels, rakes and other hand-held tools a proper once-over before they put them away for the winter. The first step is to clean them up with warm water and a brush. Spades may still be covered in soil left over from the summer, and there may still be sap to wipe from the pruners. Once they are clean and dry, it is time to get them ready for their well-earned rest. Metal parts should be sprayed with special spray to stop them rusting and blades should be checked over to see if they need sharpening.


Irrigation systems in hibernation

Water butts and watering cans should be emptied fully before the first frost. Keen gardeners should also check that hose reels, hoses and sprayers are all empty before putting them somewhere dry and protected against frost. Luckily, GARDENA has equipped these items with built-in frost protection, so it is not the end of the world if anything does accidentally get left outside. The mains supply to outdoor taps and pipes at risk of freezing must be turned off and the air should be bled out of them. It is important to avoid any risk of them being damaged or even destroyed by water freezing inside them.

Garden owners who use an automated irrigation system should ideally cut off its water supply. Valves need to be removed and stored somewhere they cannot be damaged by frost.


Lawn helpers in recovery

Robotic mowers can be trusted to take good care of beloved lawns whatever the weather. As soon as temperatures approach freezing, the mowing schedule is automatically cancelled, as cutting frozen grass damages the lawn. This leaves plenty of time to tend to a mower so that it is ready to get back to work once spring has sprung. The GARDENA maintenance and cleaning set for robotic mowers can help tick off these tasks in no time:

• Wash the robotic mower and charging station with a hose and brush
• Clean the blade disc, check the blade and replace it where necessary
• Charge the battery for winter by charging up the robotic mower to full capacity and removing it from the charging station
• Dry off the robotic mower, charging station and power pack once clean and store them all in a frost-proof location

As a rule of thumb, garden tools should be inspected at the beginning and end of every gardening season. High quality and careful processing ensure a long use of the products and thus support resource-saving gardening. If one part of a tool does end up pretty worn after heavy outdoor usage, the extensive range of spare parts allows gardeners to replace it in the comfort of their own home in no time. When it comes to trickier problems, the repair team can work their magic to keep well-used garden tools in action for years rather than them having to be replaced at the first sign of trouble. This is good news for the environment and the bank balance.

Find more information on natural gardening in the GARDENA e-book Sustainable gardening. Tips and inspirations for a colourful garden ecosystem.