Don’t Throw Those Pumpkins Away!
Researchers estimate that by the end of the season, Americans will have spent $800 million on Halloween pumpkins. That means that there will be a lot of pumpkins starting to go bad now . Rotting food exacerbates climate change via greenhouse gases. So, at the end of the season, don’t throw out those pumpkins!
Here’s what you should do instead:
Eat Them
Believe it or not, as long as the pumpkin on your porch isn’t rotting, it can be turned into tasty treats. All pumpkins are edible (even if some types are superior to others when it comes to use in the kitchen), but there are some restrictions on when you should use your Halloween pumpkins for cooking and baking. If you have a carved or painted pumpkin, avoid eating it. Pathogens can grow easily in Jack-o-lanterns, and not all paint is nontoxic. But if you’re like me and set out whole pumpkins as decorations, cook away! Roasting is a particularly good method for cooking all parts of the pumpkin.
Compost Them
If cooking seems like a hassle, you can always compost your pumpkins. As previously mentioned, when food rots in your local dump, it produces methane gas. Methane is a greenhouse gas that is considered worse for the environment than carbon dioxide. Adding your pumpkin to your compost pile is a way to let it rot in a beneficial, not harmful, way.
Plant the Seeds
Want a pumpkin patch of your own? Plant the seeds from your pumpkins. Yes, store bought seeds for planting may be better and yes, if you plant the seeds in winter you’re not always guaranteed pumpkins when the weather is nicer. But I have definitely been able to get a beautiful, big pumpkin patch in the backyard with the seeds from a carved pumpkin and no work. In fact, the seeds fell through the deck we were carving the pumpkins on, and many pumpkins grew without any planning or effort on our part. Others seem to have had anecdotal success with this, so it may be worth a shot for you too!
Feed Them to Animals
The animals in your area might appreciate a pumpkin snack. If you have a painted pumpkin or a pumpkin you’ve sprayed with something to slow its decomposition, keep these away from animals. But otherwise, you have options! Your local zoo may be in need of donated pumpkins for animal enrichment. Animals like squirrels can and will eat pumpkin, so leaving a smashed pumpkin out for these critters is also a good option. (Just make sure you’re doing so on private land as not all local governments are fans of this option.)
Whatever you choose to do, pat yourself on the back for not only using a natural decoration for the season, but for getting rid of it in a way that helps the environment.
