I love gardening, living clutter-free, and…hoarding garbage. These three passions clash the most in my garden shed.
Anytime I can repurpose trash instead of buying something new, I’m jumping on it. But with stacks of takeout containers, paper bags, egg cartons, random plastic sheets, and other “treasures” I hoard, keeping my garden shed tidy takes some work and creativity.
Here are my best tips for organizing your shed and outdoor storage areas.
Phase 1: Visualize your dream shed
It helps to picture the end result before diving into a project, so start with the overall goal.
What will you use the space for?
We’ve talked about this for indoor areas with Room Recipe Cards–establish what purposes the area serves.
For example, here are the purposes my shed serves:
- Gardening. This takes up about half of the shed. Pots and containers, tools, fertilizers, buckets, plastic trash (mostly destined to become mini-greenhouses and seedling containers).
- Animals. A higher shelf holds animal supplies. Extra cages (which I frequently repurpose to protect seedlings from squirrels), warming pads for baby animals, fostering-only items, water warmers for the chickens in winter, and equipment for raising chicks.
- Car repair. Jacks, ramps, and car tools also live in here.
With those three purposes established, anything that doesn’t fit one of them doesn’t belong in the shed.
How much functional space do you need?
If the area is purely for storage, then you won’t need too much extra space–just enough to navigate and easily find items.
But if you’ll be working in here–if the space doubles as workshop, repair, or gardening space–map out your work zones. That might mean a clear surface, or a certain amount of floorspace that needs to stay open.
Knowing how much functional space you want gives you a clearer sense of how much you need to declutter.
Phase 2: Clear out
Sorting
When decluttering anything, step one is choosing your sorting piles. They might be:
- Keep
- Trash
- Donate
- Not sure
Defining your piles beforehand means fewer decisions per item. Instead of picking something up and spiraling through infinite possibilities, you only have to choose between 2-4 options. It’s easier, trust.
For your “not sure” items, here’s what I recommend:
“Not sure” items
Utility areas like garden sheds can be tough to declutter because you MIGHT need something later. It’s hard to tell what projects you’ll get up to in the future. So here’s what you can do: Box up the category and give it a “use by” date.
For example, I have a stack of plastic containers that I hold onto for up-potting my seedlings before planting them in a garden bed. If I don’t use them by the end of the second season I’ve had them, I’ll drop them off at a plant nursery for them to use.
Otherwise, I’d have a stack that never stops growing.
If you’re a big hobby person, you might pack all of your equipment and materials for a certain hobby into one box and label it: Wood carving tools–use by MONTH/YEAR. If that set timeframe passes and you haven’t opened the box, you know you can go ahead and declutter it.
This gives you a real chance to use those things while keeping you honest.
Where to donate garden and shed items
If you’re into sustainable minimalism or just hate the idea of things you declutter ending up in a landfill, same! Here are options for getting rid of things with as little waste as possible.
Can you repurpose it elsewhere?
An item might not have a permanent home in your shed, but maybe it can be useful somewhere else. For example, I had a few old dinner plates in my shed for plant drainage trays, but I never actually used them for that. Instead of throwing them out, I attached them to pedestals with a couple coats of textured paint to make cute bug baths for my yard.
Offer it to your community.
If you have friends and neighbors who garden (or whatever activity the item is related to), offer them your extras. I have a constant flow of things going to and from my neighbors’ places. And sharing will usually come back to you. I haven’t bought gardening equipment in forever–I just ping the group chat to see if anyone has something they’re getting rid of, and they usually do!
Plastic plant pots → nurseries.
Your local plant store or nursery most likely accepts donations of those flimsy plastic plant containers. You can get them out of your space and know they’re going to good use!
Tools and materials → ReStore.
ReStore is the Habitat for Humanity store. If you have one close to you, you can donate household items, furniture, tools, flooring, doors, appliances, materials, etc. that they then resell at a bargain. The money goes toward Habitat for Humanity.
This is a great cause to donate your tools and materials to.
If you don’t have a ReStore near you, odds are something similar exists.
Community gardens.
Check with your city or community garden organizers to see if they’re in need of items.
You can also post the items for giveaway on Facebook Marketplace, Craigslist, Nextdoor, or your neighborhood app of choice.
Phase 3: Clean
Once the unwanted items are cleared out (or boxed up with a “use by” date), it’s time to actually clean.
Use a broom to knock down webs and dust from your ceiling, walls, and shelves, then grab the Shop-Vac or dustpan to remove debris and dust from the floors.
If your space allows it–concrete floors, for example–hose it out or pressure wash the interior and exterior.
Phase 4: Organize & upkeep
Once your shed is decluttered and cleaned, it’s time for the fun part: Organizing!
Vertical storage
Vertical storage in tight space is key. Use shelves and hooks to get things off the floor and out of the way.
Visual storage
Use labels and/or clear containers to store your items in a way that enables you to know what’s in there at a glance. No need to dig around if your system is functional.
Accessible storage
If it’s a pain to put something away again after you’ve used it, then you need a new system. Retrieving and returning items need to be effortless if you want your organization system to stay intact.
My best tip for organizing is to ask yourself where you’d look for the item if you needed it. That’s where it should live.
Upkeeping your tidy shed
Once you’ve done the big overhaul, you probably never want to repeat it–which means regular upkeep.
For ease, try to do it seasonally. A smaller declutter and tidy operation in the autumn and spring can keep your space functional and pleasant.
Or you can focus in on a particular category by linking it to an event that’s already occurring.
For example, after you move your plants from pots into the garden beds, take a minute to evaluate your containers:
- Which ones were actually used?
- Which ones got damaged this season?
As you’re putting them back in storage, consider which ones you can pass along and which ones might need to be retired. Wipe down the shelves while you’re at it.
Handling categories during these natural transitions makes upkeep painless–you’re already there, and the timing does the remembering for you.
Decluttering and organizing your shed pays you back–you’ll be more aware of what you have so you can utilize items you already own instead of accidentally repurchasing.
Want to save more money on the garden this year?
For more money-saving garden tips–how to score free seeds, soil, mulch, plants, containers, and more–check out my full guide: How To Garden Affordably.
