Don’t Trash Your Pumpkins!
Now that the spooky season is over, you probably are left with those cute, slightly decaying, pumpkins that you carved, painted, or just admired in the spirit of fall! Instead of tossing those pumpkins in the garbage bin this season, dispose of them in an eco-friendly way and give back to the Earth.
Every Halloween, pumpkins used for seasonal decor add 254 million tons* of solid waste to United States landfills. This is a crazy amount of waste going into the landfill that could be mitigated by making a simple habit change each Halloween. When pumpkins end up in the landfill, they produce a lot of methane and water (pumpkins are 90% water!). This ends up increasing the amount of groundwater contamination and greenhouse gas emissions that are happening in landfills across the world.
Up-cycling is something that I love because you are keeping things out of the landfill, and it provides an opportunity to sit down and let yourself be creative. It is also a great opportunity to invite friends or family over to join in. Those moments will inspire and impact those you share it with, and help normalize eco-concious decisions and habit changes.
Read below for my top 5 ways to up-cycle and properly dispose of your pumpkins and other squash or gourds!
Here are 5 simple ways to consciously dispose of those pumpkins this week!
- If you still have pumpkin seeds left, plant them. Pumpkin flowers are a source of nectar and pollen for bees and their young, so planting those seeds will support your local pollinators from your very own yard. If you don’t want flowers, dry those seeds out on your counter and sprinkle them outside for the birds to enjoy.
- If your pumpkin is still whole, eat it. Pumpkins are highly nutritional, and you can make many great recipes using every part of the pumpkin. The flesh can be used in pie, bread, and soup. The guts can be used as a base for broth or mulled wine (YUM)! Lastly, the seeds are delicious when cleaned, seasoned, and roasted.
- If your pumpkin is still firm, turn it into a fun bird feeder. Tie a rope/ribbon/twine through your carved pumpkin, fill halfway full with seeds, and hang on a nearby tree. Once your pumpkin starts looking a bit wrinkly, see the next suggestion for what you can do.
- Compost that bad boy. What better way to dispose of something than directly back into the soil that grew it. Pumpkins are 90% water, so you can place your pumpkin anywhere outside and it will decompose very quickly. Place the pumpkin at the far end of your garden, tuck it under a tree, drop it off in the woods by your house, or just be like me and toss it straight into the middle of your yard so you can watch the animals come check it out!
- Donate your pumpkins to a local organization. Places like zoos, animal sanctuaries, and farms all can use unpainted pumpkins as a fun and nutritious way to feed their animals. Many cities also have pumpkin smashing events, where you can go demolish your fall creation and then know it is being sent to a local compost center. Type in your search bar: “pumpkin collection event near me” to find out if there is anything near you. (Side note: install Ecosia into your web browser to have all of your internet searches contribute to restorative tree planting projects around the world!).
Hopefully this article has inspired you to not trash your fall pumpkins this year! When you can make simple changes like this each year, you ARE making a difference in the climate movement by living a more eco-concious life. As always, keep cutting the crap!
*According to the United States Department of Energy
