Where do you guys shop for various goods?

Wow, good topic. Thank you for mentioning Kruse, never heard of it.

First of all, where are you located???   HOME DEPOT has just about everything you want...and there is a HOME DEPOT just about every 2 miles... if not, there is a Walmart superstore.  In Walmart, these items are "seasonal" so they are not found in any great quantity now for example; emphesis is on back to school and soon will be on Haloween and Christmas so stick to Home Depot.  Remember, Puerto Rico is part of the USA!! 
In every town in the more rural areas, there are garden and hardware store which have more local, organic produce.  If you are looking for fancy, Hamptons type "garden" stores .... you can pretty much forget it.  Some areas might have a flower shop that sells some stuff but don't hold your breath.
the soil is also different here; in any supermarket ( AMIGO, SUPERMAX, PUEBLO, ECONO, Plaza Loiza) you will find bags of soil and nutrients... these are fine for what you are doing. 
remember it's the tropics, almost everything grows.....

Oh, can't find chicken and cow manure??? Just go to a farm ( or if you are in Condado, just go to the local park... there are chickens and roosters all over the place!!)  and get a bag;) 

Kruse's Blog is feeding you a load of crap. The place they are talking about is NOT a secret. It is a warehouse industrial complex in the barrio of Alturas in Mayaguez right off of Rt.2. There is a place in there that sells very good produce wholesale. They will also sell to walk in customers. A very nice man by the name of Julio owns and runs the place. I just can't remember the name of the place at the moment. I've been there personally numerous times.There is also a restaurant supply store there and a number of other wholesale operations. All the larger cities or towns (pueblos) have their own city run "plaza mercado" where you can buy local produce. Go to any farmers market (not flea market) and look for the people that are selling organic produce. They are usually Hippie types and always very nice people. From them you will be able to find the sources for manure, compost, fish emulsion and any other growing info you need. There is a growing organic food movement on the island and it's not hard to tap into. If you are ever near Rincon, there is a farmers market in the plaza every Sunday. You will be able to find these type of people there. I know that for sure because many of them were my friends. Or you can just go to the park with a plastic bag and follow the chickens around and pick up one turd at a time like someone else suggested. I'm an old organic farmer and I know you won't be able to find what you need in the quantities you need at the well known commercial stores. Get to know the organic growers. They will be more than happy to help you.

Great information, Gregg!  I'm so glad to see this topic and thread started.

Hmmm, well their blog started getting "dark" after awhile so perhaps it's not the most reliable source. Glad to hear the distribution center is not as mysterious as it sounds. Is Julio's store open during the weekdays, weekends or both? I will definitely check out the organic community in Rincon, I've been wanting to head to the west coast for awhile now anyway. Is there a blog/website/email you know of that I could contact before hand to arrange a possible pick up of supplies? I imagine they are pretty busy on the weekends (the only time I can make trips) with the market and would like to work around their schedule so it's convenient for them. Thank you for all the insightful information, I really appreciate it - I can't wait to get started gardening and eating a variety of produce again!

Oh, can't find chicken and cow manure??? Just go to a farm ( or if you are in Condado, just go to the local park... there are chickens and roosters all over the place!!)  and get a bag;) 

I was looking for something a little more efficient.

The people I'm talking about most often don't sell the supplies, but they can tell you the sources. You have to go talk to them personally. I think Julio's place is only open during the week.

there is a HOME DEPOT just about every 2 miles...

If HD has it, they are doing a very good job of hiding it from me. Walmart is pretty dismal as well. It's really nothing fancy, I consider those items pretty basic but there doesn't appear to be a demand for them. I do really need them for container gardening though, having soil with no amendments won't make my tomatoes very happy. I'm going to try and get in contact with some organic farmers this week and see what I can find. Thank you for the info!

Ok, I will do that then, since I'm already close by I'll swing by the dist. ctr. and see what I can find. Thanks again!

Olivia99 wrote:

there is a HOME DEPOT just about every 2 miles...

If HD has it, they are doing a very good job of hiding it from me.

There are a couple of Home Depot stores (9 the last time I checked, 6 of them in the metro area)  on the island but definitely not every 2 miles.
You're right, they don't sell what you're looking for.
I think the track that Gregg proposed is going to be your best choice.

Sorry, nothing really efficient exists in Puerto Rico    it's kind of do it yourself......We have chickens and roosters in the park in Condado.... last night we were at a classical concert in the middle of the city and the rooster decided to join in.... you just know you're NOT in New York .... the grass in the park is VERY healthy however.

As another garden enthusiast I also have trouble finding gardening supplies. I am friends with the owner of the agricola and I get manure from him. I always give him a six pack of beer and we remember him when we have more produce than we can use. I mail order all my soil conditioners and nutrients. We're on the eastern side of the island and have to deal with a lot of clay so we use a lot of prepared soil. As far as groceries go we either go to Sam's, ralph's or Econo depending on what we need. Prices keep going up and many items are three times what we would pay in the States. We don't use road side stands much because we have got so much bad produce. We're now growing our own citris, pineapple and water mellon and don't need the stands as much. We were at the Abinito Flower Festival a while back and got some good mango's and star fruit.

HI dolt201 and thank you for replying. Are you referring to the Agricultural Experiment Station near Caguas? Does he compost the manure or do you get it "raw"? I would love to be a part of some kind of trade community like that, I'm sure I'll have plenty to share in no time.  Can you tell me where you ordering from, you probably have it down to a science by now, at least some good shipping rates. I haven't seen a Ralph's yet, I'll have to check that out. I also heard about a place called Fresh Market that has a handful (and growing steadily!) of stores throughout the island for those that may not know about them. I'm think they are on the pricey side but when you need that one thing in a pinch its probably a good resource to have. I like to do a lot of Thai/Vietnamese/Chinese cooking so I want to check them out for various condiments I haven't been able to find. Or rather, something other than mock/awful tasting condiments.

Hi Olivia99,
I get aged manure from an agricola (agricultural store) in Naguabo right down the road from our house. I also save coffee grounds to support worms and get my ph up a bit. Home Depot carries most of the commercial fertilizers and I go to Amazon for my organic nutrients. You have to search for a vendor who will ship to PR but it can be done. We successfully grow water mellon, all kinds of beans, several varieties of cucumbers and tomatoes and of course over 20 fruit trees as well as plantains and bananas. We've also found good sprays for mosquito's and ants, sorry, don't have the names right now but will get them for you. The mosquito spray kills tarantulas and all other spiders. I don't like spiders. We encourage the snakes and I have a lot of them here. I also like the ground lizards that eat ants and small bugs.
We don't buy much fresh fish. It's very expensive and frozen! Coming from the Cape Cod area we are used to fresh fish at reasonable prices. We are planing to go fishing in hopes of getting some fresh fish. We're eating less meat and more fruits and veggies. Like you we enjoy thai food but find that the Thai veggies are expensive. When we go back to the states we pick up all the spices and sauces. If you haven't tried panna, you may want to try it out. It's a great substitute for potatoes. We've had a lot of luck growing pineapple and they do not need a lot of additives in their soil.
I hope this helps. If you are going to be on the east coast, let us know!

Hopefully I can find someone close that sells the manure. Once we're settled on the east coast i'm sure more opportunities will preset themselves. I am pretty much used to the bugs now except for cockroaches, I hate them with every fiber of my being. I actually welcome spiders because they eat the roaches, bring 'em on.

I'm afraid I will probably have to take trips to the states with an empty suitcase as well for the specialty sauces, etc. I have had pana lots of times and love them.

Thanks again for the info, I am adding your garden items to my list of things to grow, hopefully some others will chime in time to time as to what is growing really well for them. I would also love to see photos of anyones garden if they are so inclined!

Name is el viandon back side of building 4 . They carry a lot of thingds for a foodie. They deliver to restaurants in the area. In addition to produce depending on the day may have veal, tuna, lamb, duck, fresh pastas, etc. We hit Same club, el viandon, and home depot when in the area.

Right you are ciderpress 44. I couldn't think of the name of the place for the life of me. Next time you are there, tell Julio that Gregg the knife sharpener says Hi and that I'm doing well in Orlando, Fl.