The Martha Stewart Blog : Blog Archive My Organized Equipment Barn

January 8, 2026

My Organized Equipment Barn

No better time like the start of a new year to get everything around the farm in good order.

Whenever it's cold outside and my outdoor grounds crew is unable to work in the woods or gardens, I encourage them to take stock of the equipment, clean everything, and then organize all the tools and supplies. My Equipment Barn is about 40 by 120 feet, with a substantial amount of height. It is where I keep my mowers, blowers, tractors, and other pieces of important machinery. Recently, my team cleared the space and then inspected and organized everything. Keeping things well maintained and properly stored will always save time in the long run.

Here are some photos, enjoy.

: I wanted this Equipment Barn to be an attractive structure in an easy-to-access location. This building is just off the carriage road next to my Pin Oak Allée, hay barn, and vegetable greenhouse.

: I built this structure shortly after purchasing the farm. A couple times a year when schedules allow, I like the space to be cleaned and organized.

: The Equipment Barn is well lit with these big overhead lamps. I use very utilitarian lighting where I can on the farm.

: The hand tools are taken off their hooks, inspected, and grouped with other like pieces.

: Spreading them all out is a good way to know what is in good shape and how many of each tool we have in supply.

: Once emptied, the walls are blown and power washed. We use industrial hooks that can hold up to 50-pounds each.

: Then they are all returned to their designated hooks. Do you know the difference between a shovel and a spade? A shovel is longer, angled, and its blade is curved into more of a scoop with a pointed tip. Shovels are better for digging up, breaking apart, and lifting soil as well as for scooping and moving loose materials. A spade has a relatively flat blade with straight edges and the blade tends to be in line with the shaft, rather than angled forward. Spades are good for edging and cutting.

: These are hard bow rakes and soft rakes. Bow rakes have a number of other names as well, including level heads, soil rakes, and ground rakes. These rakes consist of a long head that is straight with stiff, short tines that are very rigid and don’t bend or flex. They are ideal for making planting rows and breaking up hard clumps of soil. We also use them to shape our raised garden beds. A soft rake or leaf rake is a lightweight rake that is shaped like a fan with flat, springy tines radiating outward. This type of rake is designed to be light enough to glide over grass without damaging it.

: Ladders of various sizes rest against one wall close to one set of large barn doors.

: Among the power tools we use and depend on all year long are those from STIHL. This company is a global leader in outdoor power equipment and offers more than 80 different tools including professional-grade chainsaws, blowers, string trimmers, hedge trimmers, brush cutters, pruners, saws, and so much more. All of our STIHL long handled hedge trimmers, and weed-whackers are hung in this section, ready to use.

: Nearby are the STIHL blowers. These blowers are powerful, easy to handle, and fuel-efficient.

: We have my fleet of Kubota mowers. They are used almost daily during the warmer months. Here, they are parked in a designated spot, where they can easily be driven out when needed.

: This barn also accommodates my large farm vehicles. The tractors and trucks are parked neatly inside at the end of each day.

: In this corner, I have a bank of lockers for the crew. Everyone has their own set of lockers where they can store safety equipment, extra shoes, clothing, and other personal items.

: I removed some unused lockers along this wall and replaced them with long tables and bins for things found or things needing to be returned to their rightful locations.

: Do you recognize this? It was my old Martha by Mail truck that was repainted a few years ago to be our Martha.com truck. It originally was a postal delivery truck from the 80s, which I bought years ago.

: Hung on these hooks are spreaders for seed and fertilizer.

: Chemicals and oils are always kept in this storage cabinet specifically designed for flammables.

: All the smaller tools, such as these large combination wrenches are also organized and hung over the workbench.

: Lastly, the floors are blown, power washed, and left bare to dry for several hours.

: And this is a vintage Allis-Chalmers tractor from the 1940s. It reminds us all how much these farm pieces have evolved over the years. At the end of a day, it’s always very refreshing to see a clean and well-organized space.