Published: 20 February 2026 - Watch on YouTube
Welcome back to My Windy Garden. In this allotment update from West Sussex, I return after heavy rain and strong winds to check for storm damage, fill my raised beds with compost, and try to save my garlic before it is too late.
After another period of heavy rain and strong winds, I visited the allotment to check for damage. The main path was still in place but very soft underfoot, and I found bits of debris blown in during the storm.
Unfortunately, some of my garlic started rotting in modules. I planted it very late in the season and lost several cloves already. I decided to use this dry window to plant whatever was left into the raised beds and give it a fair chance.
My original plan was to use one compost bag per bed, but seeing how little volume that created, I added more to properly fill at least one bed for the garlic.
Once I opened the compost bags, I realised the quality was very poor. The compost was extremely dry, dusty, and did not smell right. Some bags looked more like dust than nutritious growing medium.
Although I have horse manure on the plot, it is still too fresh. It has only been decomposing for about two months and would likely burn young roots if used now.
I plan to use the manure later in the season, once it has broken down further. For now, the garlic and future onions will have to rely on multipurpose compost.
I transplanted White Casablanca and Germidour garlic into the prepared raised bed, arranging them in rows and adjusting spacing as I went.
Some cloves showed healthy roots, while others were clearly no longer viable. Despite the compost concerns, I planted everything that still looked alive and hoped the expected rain would help settle the soil.
I also discovered a forgotten bag of late daffodil bulbs in the shed. Although it was very late in the season, I planted them between the raspberry canes to see if they might still grow.
This year, my approach to the allotment is slow and low pressure. I am focusing on building the structure of the plot and treating any harvest as a bonus rather than a requirement.
Thank you so much for watching and for supporting My Windy Garden. If you would like to follow the full allotment transformation journey, please subscribe and join me for the next update.
Tags: #Allotment #PlantingGarlic #RaisedBeds #GardeningUK #MyWindyGarden