April,

There is a compost board on gardenweb that can tell you specifically why your compost isn't getting hot enough. I know you have to balance out the greens (grass, hay, weeds) with the browns (coffee grounds, poo, eggshells and veggie peels). If I remember right, it's a 3 green to 1 brown ratio. I'm in FL, so don't know if the temps are affecting your compost pile's heat.

As for compost for the beds, I started with only 3 kinds (cow, mushroom and horse), then supplemented with homemade compost as it became available. My homemade stuff has lots of other ingredients in it. I'd use the three you have and supplement with the homemade as it gets ready.

As for using medium vermiculite, use what you can find. Lots of folks have a hard time even finding the medium size.

Good luck and happy planting.

UCG look brown but they are indeed a green N. Browns consist of junk mail(window removed), leaves, straw etc. Browns(Carbons) keep it from stinking. Greens(Nitrogen) get it to cook.

From the pic it looks like alot of pine straw, pine needles take along time to break down due to a waxy coating. They are one brown that definitely benefits from shredding, not necessary but will take a long time other wise.

Here is a link that might be useful: Soil and compost