County Gardeners Extension Express

What to do with Your Halloween Pumpkins

Pumpkins and jack-o'-lanterns are great fall decorations. After Halloween, there are several options of what to do with your unwanted pumpkins. Consider these options before resorting to throwing them into the trash.

1. Feed livestock

   Instead of throwing away pumpkins, consider feeding them to livestock. Livestock such as cattle, chickens, and pigs will eat pumpkins. Only feed them pumpkins that are not painted or bleached and are not yet molded.

2. Feed wildlife

   If you do not have livestock, old pumpkins can be disposed of in your yard or woods to feed wildlife such as birds, deer, and squirrels. Only feed them pumpkins that are not painted or bleached and are not yet molded. Cutting pumpkins into smaller pieces is ideal for eating as food sources in chilly weather become scarce.

3. Composting

   Pumpkins are great to put into your compost piles. For faster composting, break or cut the pumpkins into smaller pieces. Do not compost pumpkins with paint, stickers, or other decorations.

   *Do not forget to turn your compost pile this month!

4. Preserving seeds

   After collecting pumpkin seeds, lay them on a paper towel to dry out. Make sure they are completely dry to prevent mold while storing. Put seeds in a plastic bag, remember to label them if you have different varieties, and store them in a cool place such as the refrigerator. Once the frost has passed the following year, you can plant the seeds to grow new pump-kins for fall. For more info on growing pumpkins in Mississippi, check out Extension Publication 2905, Growing Pumpkins for the Home Garden.

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