It's good to hear nothing untoward happened to your flowers. I think Clayton may have released their compost to the public too soon--still wasn't finished; all hot and steamy inside. Here's what Sandy Baker says in "The Complete Guide to Organic Lawn Care": "How the compost smells is an indication of its maturity. You want compost that smells as earthy and rich as possible. If the compost emits a strong, unpleasant odor, this indicates that the organic material has not decayed and will not be good for your grass. Your compost should not be hot and steamy, as this is another indication of compost that has not fully matured." "....if you find the compost has not matured sufficiently when you get it home and the store will not provide a refund on an opened bag, add it to your backyard compost pile if you have one, and allow it to ripen." The compost I bought during the summer from STL Composting in Fenton didn't smell badly at all. I think it's really good stuff. I just hope it's not chuck-full of unseen NON-organic nasties like pesticides. It doesn't have the OMRI seal, but I think nothing here does, or at least very little does. Maybe if you empty out your wallet at Worm's Way, they might have some OMRI stuff - Lol

I was about to say, get ready for lots of free sources of compost materials (fallen leaves) but then I realized your area may not get as many fallen leaves as others. You may need to collect from friends and family and certain other businesses, if you want more materials than your household generates. At work, we have lots of paper towel and paper waste, so I take those and shred them up to use in the compost pile. Combining that with the 1/10th to 1/4th greens that are suggested, then I seem to add to my compost pile about every 1-2 weeks for my small needs.

Hi Smilla, I also live in Saugerties and have gardened here for 35 years. The only place I know for free compost is the New Paltz landfill, off route 32 north of NP. They have a huge pile of composted leaves, older on one side that the other. You have to load it yourself and bring a pickup or containers like those white plastic buckets. I used to be able to get mushroom dirt and manure free but nowadays, the mushrooms are grown in Pennsylvania and the horse farms sell the manure. If you have space, you can compost your own leaves and grass clippings (my neighbors give me their clippings) or just use the grass clippings as mulch. If you learn of any other places, I'd love to hear about them. Happy Gardening.

I am from Austin! But live in Maine now... but am surprised you can't find a fantastic selection of composts there... Go online and find the Texas A&M Agricultural Extension Service and see if you can find out where you can get great compost. I would also go ask around at Whole Foods Central Market. I know they don't sell compost there, but they might know where to get "the good stuff". Coast of Maine is a fantastic brand that makes blueberry compost, lobster compost, and other fish compost that is superb for growing huge, healthy fruits and veggies, and gorgeous flowers, organically. I personally do not trust municipal compost because it can contain municipal grass and leaves that are treated with pesticides, fungicides, and herbicides. In Austin, you should also be able to get either liquid or bags of vermicompost... which is earthworm castings. You should be able to get "worm tea" and "worm castings". Ask Home Depot, ask Whole Foods, and ask at Ruta Maya if they are still in business and still attract whatever you call crunchy people these days, or the Magnolia Cafe. Someone there will at least know someone who does or sells vermicompost and/or knows where you can get all the good stuff. Heck, call local nurseries. Best luck to you, but from my memory of 11 years ago in Austin, seems like back then, the world was your oyster in Austin for things like choices in compost, etc. Hope that hasn't changed. Here's the "worm bin in Austin" page right here on Garden Web! http://forums.gardenweb.com/forums/load/verm/msg1214415827635.html