Spring is the time for heavy cleaning. Everything from flowerpots to rims needs to be cleaned.

Spring cleaning is a tough job that pays off

Reuse is our absolute favorite word, and that of course also applies to pots and saucers

Before you reuse your pots, however, you should be careful to wash them out to avoid unpleasantries such as fungi, bacteria, or other pests spreading and taking hold in this year's fresh plants. (If you didn't wash them last fall   )
Wash all pots, both clay pots and plastic pots all need to be clean for a successful planting year.

Small thin plastic pots can also be recycled, just be a little careful when you wash them; if they are broken, they should be sorted as hard plastic.

What about the patina then? -Well, the patina on a used clay pot IS very beautiful, but if you use soap, you will notice that the pot gets clean, but that a good part of the patina you have worked up will reappear quite quickly. So, no worries!

Cleaning tools can be found here!

Here's how you do it:

A dish brush for flowerpots is very practical to have. With such a coarse brush, you can easily remove dried-on soil. You will find that the brush having the same shape as the flowerpot is very practical, although of course a regular dish brush also works well. So … get rid of any soil that is stuck in the pots.

If you know that you have had problems with really troublesome pests, you can freeze your pots to reduce the risk of it spreading, and of course talk to your garden center because they know how to handle and remedy problems of this type. Pots that are placed outdoors to freeze must be completely dry, otherwise they will crack.

You can wash plastic and porcelain pots directly. Clay pots benefit from being soaked for a while beforehand.

Wash the pots with soap. If you prefer solid soap, you can just take a dollop directly on the brush, and if you choose liquid soap, you can pump soap directly into the pot and wash out with warm water.

A stickler for order might now wonder if dish soap isn't just as good?! And sure, the pots will get clean even with dish soap, but it's not quite as easy, and it is actually the case that algae, fungi, and the like really hate soap. It is easier to get rid of such things with a good soap. Even window sills (outdoors) and garden furniture that have been attacked by algae can be treated with soap.

We wash the outside with an ecofiber sponge and soap.

Let them dry, and then it's just to start planting.

Never flush leftover soil down the drain – it easily causes blockages! Sink and dish brushes must be thoroughly cleaned with soap after you have washed soil out of pots.

Geraniums and cuttings belong to spring; taking cuttings from geraniums is not difficult. They are grateful plants that tolerate both a little rough handling and an occasional watering mistake.

Prune your scraggly and overwintered geraniums and at the same time take cuttings (cut off small branches that stick out and look like they are doing well) If you have time, you can put the cuttings in a glass of water, they will soon form roots. Otherwise, you can also stick them directly into the soil, but then it is a little extra important to remember the watering. The new plant should not dry out in the beginning.

In this way you get lots of new plants. You can also buy cuttings in flower shops or garden centers.

If you get cuttings from a friend, you should be a little careful, let those cuttings stand by themselves for a week so that you are sure that they do not carry any infection / pests that can be transmitted to your plants.

Feel free to put a plastic bag over the pot with the new little plant, then you get a small greenhouse and a happy little plant that grows quickly.

Tire changing times mean dirty fingers

It's much more fun to switch to winter tires if you take the time to scrub up the tires and rims; in addition, it's much nicer to handle them when they are clean, and it looks so much better!
A rim brush is a good investment right now … it lasts "forever," and it makes you clean the rims in the blink of an eye. It reaches everywhere, and it doesn't scratch!

If you want more car cleaning tips, there is a blog about it here!

Products used in the blog above can all be ordered at: Västerbottenssåpa