I believe the easiest way to get compost to the bin is via 4 children, but I understand there are drawbacks that come with that particular solution. ;-) We generate an enormous amount of compost. Husband loves cooking. He loves buying vegetables more than he loves to cook them, unfortunately. He is more of a meat guy, but based on his shopping I believe he wishes he ate more vegetables. Between the food we do eat and the food that goes bad before we eat it, it's a pile. Our compost pile has been overflowing for a long time, despite being able to use much of the good product this summer. This fall I bought two of these geobins for composting, and so far am happy. I would think they would make a good temporary bin to keep closer by in winter if somebody didn't want to use a plastic garbage bin. I bought them because I truly didn't have time to build anything myself, and by the time I bought supplies I figured I wouldn't be too far off the $32 cost for the geobin. It is easily adjusted from a small to large radius so I didn't have to think about sizing. Geobin composter I used to "do" composting better. Kept it wet, turned, and hot/warm, etc. Our chickens we used to have were a huge help. Now I don't have the time. I'm into cold composting, which is a nicer way to say "dump it and leave it."

Our compost bin has for years been just 4 pallets which I originally tied together with binder twine. More recently DH has nailed it together. All we did until last year was dump all kitchen scraps with no layering or doing anything except removing the top layer to give it more time and digging out the black compost at the bottom. We only did that once a year in this cold climate. No muss, no fuss, no smells, and no expense. We live on a large acreage with deer, chipmunk, squirrels, mice, fox, coyote, cougars, and bears and only twice in 12 years has a bear been in the pile. He threw the pallets helter-skelter but otherwise no problem. I don't think bears are really attracted to the pile as they are around all the time and would be in it more often if they were. The other animals have never seemed to notice it except for the squirrels and a few birds but they don't eat much. ;-) When we lived in the city on a 60 x 100 foot lot we buried the kitchen scraps between the rows of the garden. Made lovely black soil out of the crummy heavy clay we started with. Again no muss, no fuss, no expense, and even less work than the bin system. I call that system "feeding the worms" and they do all the work. Since discovering this forum I'm trying for faster and more compost so am doing other things as well but all winter all we do is chuck the stuff in the bin. Once all the snow thaws I'll turn it, add more used coffee grounds and some wood shavings and use if for top dressing - kind of compost/mulch. IMO better to compost lazily than not at all.

Onions and their friends garlic, shallots and leeks all grow underground as bulbs (they're part of the lily family). They have naturally occurring compounds that stave off bacteria and fungi, which helps them survive for a long time underground. Therefore, they aren't the most easily compostable thing in your kitchen...I think the onion has to be very old and "weak" before the bacteria/fungi can win the fight and chomp it up. Onions will compost, it takes longer than it takes a banana peel.

If they are just small scraps, you can also put them in strategic places for birds to find in late winter. I included a link to another thread (ha) on the subject. It's quite a treat to find a nest with scraps of your latest project in it! Of course, natural fibers are best, but others can also work as long as they don't degrade into long, nonbiodegradeable string that can injure or kill a chick. Here is a link that might be useful: Fabric Scraps for Birds