What an excellent article. I love it that you are relaxed about the whole thing, putting all sorts in and not worrying about recipes. That's how I do my compost, too. I even compost large pieces of wood but I uput them in a separate bin, with autumn leaves, so that they can rot slowly. Your idea about chicken-wire to keep out rats is a good one. Rats ar the main reason I keep the lids on my daleks, too.