What to do with it

Shade and shelter

In Queensland, working in direct sun is brutal from about October through April. The shanty makes outdoor work practical for most of the year. You can pot on, do maintenance, sort gear, and generally get things done without stopping every twenty minutes because it is too hot to think. Rain is the same -- a light shower does not have to end a job.

Night lighting

I have orange LED strip lights under the shanty for when I need to go out after dark. Orange light sits at a frequency that does not attract mosquitoes -- which in a Queensland summer is the difference between working outside at night and getting eaten alive. White or cool-white LEDs pull insects from a long way off. Orange does not. Well worth the small cost of a strip and a DC connection off your battery system.

Propagation

A potting bench under the shanty is one of the best uses of the space. You want shade for seedlings -- direct sun kills new growth before it gets established -- and the shanty gives you consistent dappled light or full shade depending on where you put the bench. You have water right there from the IBC tanks. Propagate, pot up, and harden off all in the one spot.

Always be propagating. It costs nothing once you have stock plants, and it means you always have something to put in when something else dies or gets pulled out.

Worm farm

Worms do not like direct sun and they do not like heat. A worm farm under the shanty is out of direct sunlight, catches the shade even in summer, and stays cooler than anything sitting in the open. Mine runs year-round without much intervention. Worm castings go straight into the garden beds; the liquid (diluted) goes on everything.

Put the farm close to the kitchen scraps source -- the further it is, the less reliably it gets fed. Under the shanty with a path to the house is the right trade-off between shade and convenience.

Tool and gear storage

A dry spot to keep things that cannot live outside. Bags of soil, fertiliser, seeds, garden tools, electrical gear, extension leads. The shanty is not a proper shed -- it is open on the sides -- but it keeps direct rain and sun off, which is enough for most things.

For anything that genuinely needs to be locked away or fully weatherproof, put it in the shed underneath (if you have one) or in a weatherproof box or cabinet under the roof.

The post-work beer

There is a tradition in the builder's shanty that goes back a long way. The job is done, it is knock-off time, and you sit in the shade with the lads and a cold one. This still applies. A frugal project runs better when there is somewhere comfortable to stop and take stock of what you have built. The shanty is that place.