All you need is oil, vinegar, steel wool and a whetstone to get everything looking as good as new
I am a tool-care evangelist. I like to keep my harvest knife sharp and my garden fork hung up tidily in the shed. At least this is what I tell myself – because I believe tool care is important despite, in reality, being the kind of grower who drops her secateurs and forgets to pick them up before an overnight rain, or leaves a trowel stuck in the ground at the end of a veg bed, convinced – erroneously – that I’ll remember to put it away as the sun starts to set.
Rust corrodes the metal parts of our garden tools, affecting how well they work and even their safety. Small patches can be removed using wire wool and perseverance but, ideally, we’d prevent it from appearing in the first place by cleaning, drying and storing our tools properly after each use. But if you, like me, are a fallible human who occasionally finds certain tools have turned the shade of autumn leaves, it is entirely possible that they can be rescued.
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