Bleaching Minor Stains with Sunlight
Remove loose pollen. Shake the stained garment and press the adhesive side of tape to it to lift remaining pollen. Similarly, loose pollen grains can be gently vacuumed from the fabric. This will prevent you from grinding the pollen grains into the fibers of your garment any more and prevent the stain from growing larger.
Place the garment in direct sunlight. Hang the garment up in direct sunlight for two to three hours. After a few hours have passed, check the stain; the sun should completely (or nearly completely) fade the pollen stain. If the stain is severe, however, this may not be enough to eliminate it.
Soak the stain in cold water for 30 minutes. If sunlight alone is not enough, place the fabric in cold water and soak it. After soaking, allow the garment to dry in direct sunlight.
Pretreating and Washing the Stain
Rinse the stain with cold water. Use cold water to flush out as much of the stain as possible. Many of the pigments in pollen are composed of fats and respond best to cold water for removal. Therefore, avoid using hot water before pretreating the stain, as it may further set it and make it more difficult to remove later.
Apply a pretreatment solution and let it soak for 20 minutes. You can use an enzyme cleaner, traditional laundry spot cleaner, or a small amount of dishwashing liquid. Any of these pretreatment solutions should be adequate for stain removal. Gently work the pretreatment solution of your choice into the stain and allow it to sit for at least 20 minutes before washing. Before pretreating, test the solution on an inconspicuous area to test for color-fastness. Enzyme cleaners work by breaking down biological substances (such as the fat in pollen pigment) and thus generally work best for this type of stain.
Wash the garment in your washing machine. Use your normal detergent on the hottest setting that the fabric will allow (check the tags of the garment for washing instructions). For stubborn stains, use an enzyme-based detergent and wash in warm water; this type of detergent works best with warm, but not hot, water.
Dry Cleaning the Fabric
Purchase an at-home dry cleaning kit. This method is best if the stained garment is dry-clean only or the stain is on carpet, upholstery, or other surface that cannot be soaked. The kit should come with a reusable bag, cleaning cloths, and stain remover.
Blot the stain. Use a small amount of dry cleaning stain remover and a clean cloth to gently blot the stain; continue to blot without adding more solution until the stain is dry. If the stain remains, repeat with more stain remover and another clean cloth.
Dry clean the garment according to the kit’s instructions. Generally, you will place the garment in the provided bag along with a pre-moistened cleaning cloth and dry on a medium setting for about 30 minutes.
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