I always put compost on my beds, usually in spring. It doesn't matter when you do it though. I'm not an expert on compost, but maybe your compost didn't get hot enough to kill the weed seeds? Do you get frozen temps in your area? That should kill the weeds this winter. In any case, they should be easy to pull or hoe out when young.

Whether or not to till it in is a matter of opinion, some saying tilling is counterproductive to soil health.

I think it's a good idea to mulch before the ground freezes, to protect the soil. A layer of mulched leaves does a good job, and leaves the soil beautiful in spring.

Adding compost in September was a really good idea even though those "weeds" germinated. There is no need to till, just get enough newspaper and mulch to cover the area now and that will kill those "weeds" for you.

the only thing you may not have done is to mulch over the compost, that would have taken care of most things that wanted to sprout. outside of that i can't see any thing wrong with what you did we work a similar system in our gardens, where all composting happens on the garden between the plants.

len

Here is a link that might be useful: lens garden page

Thanks! The compost looked good to me, had spent all summer breaking down, had been hot when I turned it, but still had weed seeds I guess from yard clippings added towards end of summer?
Anyway, so I've got a layer on the garden. Leaves have fallen now on the garden, covering it. Should I leave them there? Will they break down since they are whole? If they get wet, will this contribute to possible fungal problems?

All leaves will be "broken down" by the soil bacteria eventually, how soon depends on how much preservative is in those leaves. Oak has lots, but they also get digested over time. So you can leave those leaves where they are and they will not contribute to possible fungal problems.
What fungal "problems" have you seen that causes you to be concerned? Most organic matter needs the action of fungi as well as bacteria to be digested and incorporated into your soil.

All good advice. One problem I have had with mulching soil in fall or winter is if the mulch doesn't break down by spring time the soil will stay very wet and cool slowing the growth of my spring plants and causing rot in potatoes.
Concerning the weed seeds, building a compost pile all at once and monitoring it with a compost thermometer will help with your weed seeds and possible disease.

Here is a link that might be useful: Composting

I second what Judy said, a mulch on the garden will significantly slow the soil from warming up in the spring. Chopped (mulched) leaves will make a better cover than whole leaves, as whole ones mat together when they're wet and form kind of a blanket that keeps air and water out.

THere are lots of differing opinions in gardening, and organic gardening is no exception. Many people believe in using newspaper in the garden. It should be pointed out that this means black inked pages only. But I still don't like the idea of black print because, although many/most papers now use soy ink, I suspect there are other chemicals in the ink, like solvents, etc, that you wouldn't want in your soil.

The fall applied compost is still a good idea. The weeds that do sprout will not go to further seed but act as a cover crop catching nutrients that may otherwise leach out. Likely they are annual weeds and may be winter killed. The spring till will turn them under.
Organic matter content aids in improving soil structure; drainage, retention, aeration and warming in spring.
All plants, even weeds are organic matter.
The best mulch after fall composting is a cover crop. Consider a fall rye or clover variety which you normally would till under as soon as the ground is workable in spring.

A soil that does not warm up properly in the spring may well be a soil that simple does not have sufficient levels of organic matter in it. The gardens I tended in Indiana and Ohio, all clay, when covered with a heavy mulch the first year or two were slow to warm up but once adequate levels of OM were in those soils they warmed up as quickly as any other soil, maybe a bit better than nearby clay soils with little or no OM in them.

I use 100% compost. Some of it is from chipped and composted tree debris, and the rest is grass clippings. If you don't have enough good quality soil and compost and you would like to add sufficient organic matter to your garden beds to ammend your soil, you can add Growth Products Essential Plus 1-0-1. It is a USDA Bio-Preferred Organic Soil Ammendment and Rooting Biostimulant...excellent stuff. Also, I mix in 8 ounce foil packs of The Landscaper's Companion (fine granuals) which contains Bacillus Subtilus Rhizosphere bacterial spores to help the roots develop and prompt Induced Systemic Resistance in plants. It also contains a yucca wetting agent and humic acid. Throughhout the growing season, I also foliar apply Companion Liquid Biological Fungicide (the only EPA Registered Bio-Fungicide) and Essential plus 1-0-1 as well as applying it to the soil. I've had wonderful results all-around, and I have especially noticed a large reduction in my tomato plant diseases.

Here is a link that might be useful: Delta Green Supply