So you bought an expensive cutting that tested negative for a variety of virus, how do you keep virus from spreading when it’s in your garden? There is a lot to say on the topic, but one best practice is sanitizing your clippers between each plant. This post will guide you through why this practice is essential and how to properly sanitize your tools to keep your dahlias healthy.
Why Sanitization Matters
Viruses can easily spread from one plant to another through contaminated tools. When you cut into a dahlia, you create an open wound that can be exposed to any viruses lingering on your clippers from previous cuts. Without proper sanitization, these viruses can enter the plant, leading to symptoms such as stunted growth, discolored leaves, or distorted flowers. Over time, the virus can spread throughout your garden, affecting not only your dahlias but also other susceptible plants.
What You Need for Sanitization
To effectively sanitize your clippers, you’ll need a few key items:
- Sanitizing solution: There are a few out there, but a 10% bleach solution has been studied and shown to eliminate virus. There is also a product called Virkon S that can kill virus
- Bleach Solution: A mixture of one part bleach to nine parts water can be used. However, bleach can be corrosive to metal, so it’s important to rinse your tools with clean water and dry them thoroughly after their bleach bath.
- Virkon S: This comes in different forms. I’ve used tablets that you drop in water and found it is less corrosive than bleach. However the contact time required is longer.
- Unstudied efficacy – Disinfectant Wipes & Blow Torch: Pre-soaked bleach wipes can seem handy but it may be difficult to get the correct contact time. There is no data on heat sanitizing but your blade has to reach the correct temperature to kill virus. These seem iffy.
How to Sanitize Your Clippers
Follow these steps to ensure your clippers are properly sanitized between each cut:
- Wipe or Dip: After each plant cut, put your clippers in a disinfecting solution. Make sure the blades are fully covered.
- Wait: Allow the clippers to sit for the amount of time indicated on the bottle. For bleach this is usually about three minutes, for Virkon S it can be 10 minutes. For bleach wipes, it is often four minutes. Sanitizing is a chemical reaction and it does not happen instantly.
- Rinse (if using bleach): If you’re using a bleach solution, rinse the clippers with clean water after sanitizing to prevent corrosion.
- Repeat: Continue this process between each plant or even between cuts on the same plant if you suspect any infection.
Additional Tips for Maintaining Healthy Dahlias
- Regularly inspect your plants: Keep an eye out for any signs of disease, such as mottled leaves or misshapen flowers. Linda Taylor has an excellent album with photos of leaves and their virus test results. Early detection can help prevent the spread of viruses.
- Dispose of infected plants: If you notice a plant showing symptoms of a virus, it’s best to remove it from your garden entirely to prevent the spread to other plants. It is recommended that you throw it in the trash, not the compost.
- Harvest hacks:Sometimes if I don’t have my sanitizing set up with me in the field and I want to pick a dahlia, I’ll just snap the stem off at a node. If the dahlia plant is well hydrated, it can make a clean break and there are no clippers to sanitize.
