My answer is hiding in the garden shed, buried under a stack of cracked plastic cell packs from three years ago.
If you’ve ever started seeds indoors, you know the problem. The plastic six-packs multiply. The flimsy cell trays crack after one season. The red Solo cups with holes punched in the bottom pile up in corners. The nursery pots from transplants stack into leaning towers that fall over every time you open the shed door. By March, your propagation station looks less like a garden workspace and more like a recycling center that’s given up.
The best way to reduce clutter in the garden is soil blocking.
Not because it’s trendy. Not because it’s “zero waste” in that performative way. Because it eliminates an entire category of stuff you no longer need to own, store, wash, or trip over.
The plastic problem: why seed starts breed clutter
Here’s what happens when you start seeds in plastic:
- You buy cell packs or trays at the nursery or hardware store. They’re cheap and flimsy, so they crack after a season or two.
- You try to reuse them. Now you have to wash them, dry them, and store them for the next season.
- Some crack. Some disappear. You buy more.
- You also accumulate nursery pots from every transplant you’ve ever bought. 4-inch pots. 6-inch pots. 1-gallon pots. They nest, but not neatly. They take up space.
- You tell yourself you’ll reuse them, so you keep them. But they’re brittle from UV exposure. Half of them are too small for what you need, and the other half are too big.
- Now you have a bin. Or two bins. Or a corner of the shed where plastic lives.
And every spring, you dig through the pile, toss the cracked ones, wish you had more of the size you need, and end up buying more anyway.
Clutter isn’t just about the volume of stuff. It’s about the category of stuff you have to manage.
Plastic seed-starting containers are a category. A category with upkeep, storage, and decision fatigue. Soil blocking eliminates that category.
What soil blocking actually does
A soil blocker is a metal tool that compresses moist potting mix into firm, free-standing cubes. You fill a tray with the blocks, plant a seed in each one, and grow your seedlings without containers.
Here’s what you eliminate:
- Cell packs and trays: You don’t need them. The soil block is the container.
- Washing and storage: Soil blocks dissolve back into the garden when you transplant. There’s nothing to clean or store.
- Nursery pot accumulation: Once you start blocking, you stop needing to save every pot that comes home with a transplant. You transplant directly from blocks to the ground (or a permanent container).
- The “what size do I need?” problem: You buy one or two soil blockers in the sizes you use most (2-inch and 4-inch, typically). That’s it. You’re done buying.
The physical footprint: My mini soil blocker and a small bin of blocking mix take up less space than a single stack of nursery pots used to.
The freedom of no storage
This is my first year using soil blocks, and I’ve already noticed a huge difference.
When I’m done with a tray of seedlings, there’s nothing to put away. No trays to scrub. No cracked cells to sort. No stack of pots I’m not sure I’ll need next season.
I rinse the blockers under a hose, let them dry, and hang them on a nail.
That’s it.
Reducing clutter isn’t just about throwing things away. It’s about not needing them in the first place.
Better plants, less mess
The hidden benefit of soil blocking is that it also produces better transplants.
Why soil blocks work:
- Air pruning: When roots hit the edge of a soil block, they’re “air pruned” by exposure to air. The root tip dies back, and the plant sends out new lateral roots instead of circling. You get a dense, fibrous root system instead of a tangled mess. This is especially vital when growing cabbage in the humid cold, where early root health determines the plant’s resilience.
- No transplant shock: Because roots aren’t circling or bound, seedlings transplant cleanly. You pop the block into the ground, and the plant keeps growing. No setback.
- Water management: Soil blocks dry out faster than plastic cells, which sounds bad but is actually good. It reduces damping-off (a fungal disease that kills seedlings in overly wet conditions). You water more intentionally.
So you’re not just reducing clutter. You’re growing stronger plants with a simpler system.
Reducing plastic in the garden isn’t just about decluttering—it’s part of a larger strategy for climate adaptation. If you’re interested in how traditional practices like soil blocking fit into modern climate-aware gardening, check out my post Gardening in the Humid Cold: Old Wisdom Meets New Climate.
How to start (and what you actually need)
If you’re tired of the plastic pile and ready to try soil blocking, here’s the minimal kit:
1. A soil blocker
I started with a mini blocker (makes 20 small blocks at a time, about 3/4 inch each). It’s perfect for starting seeds that will be potted up or transplanted fairly quickly—brassicas, lettuce, herbs, and most vegetables. The mini size is ideal for maximizing space and starting a lot of seedlings at once.
If you need larger blocks for plants that need more time indoors before transplanting, you can add a 2-inch blocker (makes four 2-inch blocks) or a 4-inch blocker for potting up.
Brands: Ladbrooke or Johnny’s Selected Seeds blockers are the standard. They’re not cheap ($30–40 for a 2-inch blocker, around $25 for a mini), but they last decades.
2. Blocking mix
Soil blocking requires a specific mix that holds together without a container. You can buy pre-made blocking mix, or make your own.
Basic DIY blocking mix:
- 3 parts peat moss or coconut coir (a sustainable peat alternative)
- 2 parts compost (well-aged, screened)
- 1 part perlite
- A bit of garden soil for structure (optional)
Moisten the mix until it’s the texture of a wrung-out sponge. It should clump in your hand without dripping.
3. A shallow tray
You need something to hold the soil blocks while seedlings grow. A standard 10×20 nursery tray works (yes, one piece of reusable plastic is fine). Or use a rimmed baking sheet, a shallow wooden tray, or anything flat with a lip.
4. That’s it
No bins of pots. No stacks of cracked six-packs. No “I might need this size someday” guilt.
If you’re looking for a complete roadmap for the season that includes seed starting as a primary step, check out my A-Z guide to spring gardening.
The practice
Reducing clutter isn’t about minimalism for its own sake. It’s about clearing space—physical and mental—for what actually matters.
In the garden, what matters is growing. Not managing plastic. Not storing things you’re not sure you’ll use. Not washing cracked trays in March while wishing you’d just thrown them away.
Soil blocking clears that space. It simplifies the system. And once you try it, you realize that half the gardening clutter you’ve been managing wasn’t necessary in the first place.
This spring, when you’re digging through the shed looking for something to start your seeds in, ask yourself: What if I didn’t need any of this?
The soil blocker is waiting.
What clutter are you ready to eliminate in your garden? Drop a comment below—I’d love to hear what gardening gear you’re rethinking this season.
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