Decluttering isn’t just for inside the house, your garden needs a good clean as well!
Regardless whether you’re a Marie Kondo-convert or minimalist declutterer, you simply can’t deny the life-changing magic of tidying up.
A clutter-free household results in a clutter-free life, where keys are easy to find, toys are always put away and the household is significantly more manageable on a day-to-day basis.
However, clutter is not limited to the inside of a house. A garage can often become a cornucopia of tools both useful and broken, and a garden can be overrun with worn-down pots, while balls, bikes and all manner of toys are often left strewn across the lawn.
None of which makes for a garden of peace and serenity.
However, professional organiser Jo Carmichael, the founder of All Sorted Out, has some excellent advice on how to cut a swathe of calm through your outdoor area with some simple decluttering tricks.
How to declutter your garden

1. Pick your pots
Jo says to “Collect all broken pots, and pots with dead plants in them. Sort the salvageable plants from the truly deceased and group them together in one place, and display your best pots as a group – then discard the rubbishy ones.”
And if you’ve now got plants without a home, the best way to integrate them back into the garden is by adding them to the remaining pots, placing them in an alternative spot in the garden, or, shop for a new pot to invest in!
2. Get a hold of the play equipment
“Collect all the toys and balls strewn around garden and keep them together in one place, such as in baskets or appropriately-sized boxes,” says Jo. Just as a ‘tidy house means a tidy mind’, so does a tidy garden.
She adds that “It will instantly make a garden look more restful.” A garden is meant to be a place of serenity, so creating areas of storage that can keep the yard structured is an ideal way to keep the peace.
3. Utilise the tools in the garden shed
The garden shed is actually full of tools you can use for decluttering purposes. Whether you’re needed to repot a few plants with a shovel or using a leaf blower to get rid of natural debris, there’s a lot in there that can be useful. Here’s a list of garden shed tools you can use for tidying:
- Leaf blower: especially in the autumn months, raking dead leaves can be tiresome. A leaf blower does all the work for you, in half the time!
- High-pressure hose: a high-pressure hose will help you get your pavers, deck or stepping stones sparkling again. The best way to elevate your outdoor space is by giving it a good rinse.
- Gardening shears: pruning back your bigger bushes and hedges with gardening shears will do your garden wonders, and keep the plants healthy as well. Give the whole garden a haircut, to keep it looking neat and uniform.
4. Tidy up the boarding
Jo recommends to “Get around to creating a privacy screen with plants, as it can do wonders for a garden and is an easy transformation.”
Screening and hedging create a private space for you to unwind in, and there’s no better way to build on your garden than with a screen that is made up of plants as well!
5. Sort out your greenery
Finally, Jo reminds us to “relocate any plants that are arranged haphazardly in the garden and give them purpose, such as putting two of the same plant by the front door, or grouped into feature displays.”
Many gardeners often want it all, but an ‘everything but the kitchen sink’ backyard often looks unruly and overcrowded. Choose useful plants for a vegie patch or herb garden that will actually be used at dinnertime.
As for general greenery, pick a couple of focal plants, with lots of colour and texture, along with easy-to-maintain shrubs, hedges and groundcovers.

Other quick tips to sort out your garden
- Just let go. Let dead plants, broken tools, and salvaged ornaments that were never refurbished go on to their next life and either donate or discard them thoughtfully.
- Embrace a ‘less is more’ approach and allow your garden to feel a little empty before filling it with fresh plants, pots or garden furniture.
- Decide how many tools you really need, and dispose of any double-ups, broken tools or unused items.
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