Bonsai Tool Maintenance and Care

Bonsai tools are an important part of the hobby; you need them to train your bonsai properly.

So it’s only right that you should make sure these tools are in the best condition possible, which means keeping them well cared for and maintained.

Doing so is very easy and I will go through why it’s important and how to do it.

Why Do You Need To Maintain Your Tools?

Looking after your tools is extremely important. Poorly maintained tools will give you poor results and you can end up causing your tree harm.

Basically, looking after your tools will keep them working properly and lowers the risk of them causing a problem. Your tools are going to naturally go blunt, get dirty and even get a little rusty and while this is all normal, it is not ideal.

If you take pruners for example, their job is to cleanly cut through the branch. When they start getting dirty and blunt, this doesn’t happen. Instead of cutting, the blunt edges come together and crush the branch and basically tear it apart.

This actually leaves an ugly wound and as it’s more of a tear than a clean cut, it causes excess damage that is both ugly and slower to heal. If your tools are also dirty on top of this, it can introduce dirt to the inside of the tree, which is now exposed to the elements. Some dirt may contain bacteria, so you are basically snapping your branch and rubbing bacteria on it at the same time… so not ideal.

The cleaner and sharper your tools, the better your wounds will look, the faster they will heal and the less likely they will get infections.

When Should You Do Maintenance On Your Bonsai Tools?  

You can maintain your tools as and when they need it. You will be able to tell if they are dirty or are not performing as you would like it.

However, I always make sure to give my tools some proper attention at least one a year by giving them a deep clean and sharpening them and basically trying to get them to into the best condition they can be.

I find once a year is enough for this and then maybe a few quick cleaning session throughout the season to stop them from getting too gunged up with sap or dirt. 

Winter Maintenance

There is not a lot going on in winter. Your bonsai should be dormant, so it is the perfect time to keep yourself busy by getting your tools back into a good condition.

I also like to do this now, as spring will be approaching and it is nice to have all your tools in the best condition ready for the spring work.  

Winter is when I give my tools a deep clean, removing any dirt and rust, sharpening them as well as oiling them so they move more smoothly at the hinges. I will go through how I do all of this below.

Cleaning Them After Every Use

Ideally you want to clean your tools after ever use. This is just general good practice, but I don’t think it always happens.

The idea is that you quickly sterilise your tools before using them. All you need to do is give them a quick wipe with a cloth. It is common to use some sort of alcohol solution or an antibacterial wipe.

This is very common across all type of gardening and the main idea is that it should stop you spreading disease to all your plants. If you prune a true that has something wrong with it, then move on to prune another one …you could pass the infection on through the pruners.

It does make sense, your pruners will be cutting though the tree and whatever is on your blades will now be touching the inside of the tree, where infections can certainly enter.

I will be honest, I am not the best at this, however, I am pretty satisfied most of my trees are healthy. If I am not happy with the health of a tree then I do make sure to give everything a wipe before and after, just to make sure I am not adding anything to the tree, or taking anything dangerous from it.   

It is also pretty common for scissors to get gummed up with sap, so giving them a quick wipe after using them can help stop that building up so quickly.

How To Clean and Maintain Your Bonsai Tools

Looking after your tools is easy and I will go through the different things you can do. You do not need to do all of these things, but you will find that doing all of them will usually give you a better result.

Deep Clean

A deep clean really just means washing your tools really well. It’s more than just a quick wipe with a cloth.

You can wash most tools like you would wash any of your kitchen tools …warm soapy water and a cloth. This is going to get a lot of the dirt and grime off your tools and you can even use something a little firmer like a brush or even a scouring pad to clean them.

Of course be sensible, you are trying to clean them, not damage them. However, if you tool is all metal, it’s pretty hard to damage it from giving it a good scrub.      

The MOST important thing you have to do here is make sure your tools are dry afterwards. Do not let them dry naturally; make sure you do it with a towel or what not.

You can get tools wet, so washing them is fine …but letting them stay wet for longer than they need to be can cause rust, so take no chances and dry your tools off when you are finished cleaning them.

Rust Removal

If you have any rust on your tools, then this will need to be removed. You may find that some of it comes off when you give it a good scrub with the soapy water, but not always.

There is also the fact that some of it will be removed when you sharpen the tool, but you also don’t sharpen every part of it, so if the rust is in other places you will need to remove that.

Any easy method to use is to some vinegar. Soak your tools in the vinegar for a few hours and then give them a scrub, with warm soapy water as above and you should find the rust comes off.

My hope is that your tools are not too rusty in the first place, so the vinegar should be enough. However, if they are particularly bad then you can buy a chemical rust remover and use that to get the rust off.

Going forward keep you tools dry, this will help prevent rust and so will oiling, which I will discuss below.

Sharpening

Sharpening is extremely important for your tools and also very simple. You will need a sharpening tool, such as a whetstone. These are pretty cheap and will last a lifetime and you can use them for your kitchen knives too.

I just use a standard whetstone and it does the job, but you can get slimmer ones or use a file to really get into small spaces. This is better for certain tools, where the curved angle will not actually be able to be sharpened on a normal stone.

I have heard of people using sanding disks on their dremel or other similar bits, which would also work and would actually be good for sharpening hard to reach areas, such as curved pruners.

I’ve not tried that myself, as I don’t own a dremel, but when I do get one, will be testing it out as a tool sharpener.  

Oiling /Greasing

Adding oil too your tools does two things. It firstly forms a protective barrier, preventing water from getting at the metal, so it’s basically prevents (or at least drastically reduces) rust, which is of course good for their long term health.

The second thing oil will do is lubricate any moving parts or pivots, such as the hinge in your scissors. These can get stiff at times and makes using them more difficult, so having a nice smooth motion is always helpful.  

You can use any oil for this, most people just use something like wd-40 but you could also use a mineral oil or really any oil you have.

Just apply a thin coat and wipe off the excess and it will be good to go.

Things You Need To Maintain You Bonsai Tools

I will just quickly go over all the tools you need …to maintain your tools. I will have mentioned these all above, but here they are all together. So long as you have these, you tools are going to be in the best condition possible.

Does It Matter What Your Tools Are Made From?

It doesn’t really matter what your tools are made of, you should be able to use any of the above techniques on them.

You will find that most bonsai tools are made of the same stuff, either carbon steel (which are the black looking tools) or stainless steel (which are the sliver looking ones).

There is of course a chance they are made of other materials, or also contain plastic or wood. These will also be fine to wash, you just wouldn’t need to oil these parts, or do any sort of sharpening to them.

Just use your common sense and you will be fine

Always Buy the Best Tools You Can

So long as you have some decent bonsai tools they will be built to be maintained.

If your tools are extremely low quality, they may not be built to be maintained …This is always why I say you should buy the best tools you can.

Most cheap tools are poorly made and are never sharp in the first place. They are just slapped together and not made to last, they are also not made to be dissembled, so taking them apart to sharpen them can’t happen.

You can try your best with these tools, but really you should try and upgrade to the best ones you can afford they will serve you better and last much longer, mainly as you can actually take care of them and keep them in good working order a lot easier.

(You can read more about – What Are The Main Differences Between Beginner and Professional Bonsai Tools?)

Conclusion

Hopefully now you can see how easy it is to keep your tools in top condition and more importantly, why you need to do this. 

Maintenance can be boring, but it will make your life easier. There is nothing worse than using tools that are not in the best shape. They will annoy you and you will not get the results you want, which will make your tree suffer.

Spend the time maintaining your tools, you will thank yourself.

(You can read more about – A Guide To Beginner Bonsai Tools)