I messed up my MM

This is my first season to use the SFG method and my plants are just pitiful.   So I was doing some reading on here to figure out where I went wrong.  I have come to the conclusion that I didn’t buy good store bought compost and we didn’t mix all the bags of compost together before adding them to the mix.  We have bark that’s floated to the top now and I read that’s a sign that we used compost with a lot of fillers.  Anyway I already planted everything so what do I do now to help the soil? Do I need to add good compost On top or use a fish emulsion or some other organic firtilizer.  I don’t know where to go from here but I don’t want to loose everything.  Right now everything is alive but barely growing at all and it’s been almost two months since
I planted.

Amber,  You are not the first and you won't be the last person to make a mistake making Mel's Mix.    I even had the book and thought I was doing it right.  Ha!

I would recommend that you also read the book ALL NEW Square Foot Gardening by the creator and founder, Mel Bartholomew.

From here on out, you will only add mixed composts to the beds, assuming you used compost, peat moss and vermiculite to build the Mel's Mix.  Even commercial bagged composts are okay.  1.  Make sure the label states "compost", not soil amendment, top soil, mulch, etc.  2.  Read the ingredients for fillers such as peat moss, forest products, etc.  Peat moss is a no - no after you first make the Mel's Mix.  It's only added one time.  Forest products may or may not be a red flag that there are wood or bark pieces that should be screened out.  3.  You can add an organic fertilizer such as Espoma Garden-tone.  You can top with a layer of good compost.  4.  If you are really desperate, this one time only, you can add Miracle Grow at half strength.  

I like this thread on composts with photos: https://squarefoot.forumotion.com/t21089-recommended-store-bought-compost-photos-of-composts?highlight=compost

The book:

One person's score for making Mel's Mix.  

Thank you for the reply! I do have the book I guess I just didn’t study the compost part close enough.  I will try the organic fertilizer thank you so much.

Organic fertilizers like Gardentone are good to use when things are just not growing.  Not only is it a fertilizer but it also has beneficial microbes in the mixture.  I use a mixture of Gardentone and Dr Earth on almost every bed.  I use much less than the instructions on the bags say because I am also using high quality compost whenever I can.  But the Gardentone and Dr. Earth do take quite a while to be broken down into a form your plants can use.  So if you need immediate help, then a liquid fertilizer will give you a quick fix.  There are organic liquid fertilizers and non organic liquid fertilizers.  Your choice.  Maybe someone who uses liquid fertilizers will come along and help you.

My "garden" (if I can call it that) is way behind due
to an everlasting winter...your's may still catch up. 
All we can do is try...and hope for the best.

Hey, Amber!  Honestly, I did a similar thing my first year out.  It will be OK.  In the short term, as others have offered, I like Alaska brand fish emulsion (Walmart and others) to kick the nitrogen up.  Also, to keep it going, you might want to sprinkle blood meal (or a combo of 3:1 blood/bone meals) on the top of the beds and lightly rake in.  That provides a nice, slow release nutrient source.  

Live and learn!  We did, and still are!

Hi Amber. Welcome to the club from Atlanta, GA. I think a lot of us start out that way...

Sanderson & Yolos have given some good advice.

If you have any access to a wooded area. ( careful of snakes ) try scraping some of the upper part of the soil.
Sprinkle this on soil around plants. I am going to try a bed using this only as my blended compost, when I can get to it.
I am certain it will not harm anything, and understand please. This is just a thought of mine. I don't know of anyone who has done this ..

Thank you all so much for the input. I’m going to give the organic fertilizer a go.