Garden pots need a thorough scrubbing at the end of the growing season. It’s essential to clean any pots that you are reusing to rid them of disease spores, salt deposits, and pest eggs. Take those extra few minutes to do it right! Here’s how to quickly clean and disinfect your pots.
Used pots will harbor lingering bug eggs and disease spores that you can’t always see. Salt deposits also accumulate in pots, leaving a white residue and causing plant problems. Proper cleaning and disinfecting of pots requires just a minimum amount of effort, yet can mean the difference between the success or failure of containerized plants.
Not only is this good for their health, but a little TLC also cleans them up to make them look more attractive. It’s not a lot of work, but it can make a big difference in the success of container-grown plants.
To disinfect them, soak clay and plastic pots in a solution of 10 parts water to 1 part bleach for 10 minutes to 1 hour. Bleach is a harsh chemical, so take precautions—wear gloves, eye protection, and old clothes.
You can substitute vinegar for the bleach if you want; just soak the pots for a few hours longer. This will kill off those bug eggs and disease spores and help loosen the accumulated white, crusty mineral salts.
Scour the pots with a stiff-bristled brush or steel wool to remove algae, mildew, and other deposits.
Scrub off the white crust as well as you can. Sometimes, it is stubborn and hard to remove from old clay pots. Plastic is much easier to clean.
When the pots are dry, stack and store them.
Don’t be discouraged if your pots are not perfectly clean. Just do the best you can!
Now, see how to care for and sharpen your gardening tools, another great off-season gardening task!
Read more about container gardening with vegetables and choosing the right pot size.
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