This year was a great year for pumpkin farmers! (Ok, I’m just guessing on that one, but the pumpkin patches around this neck of the woods were bursting at the seams with families hunting for the perfect jack-o-lantern material this year–saw it with my own eyes!) Because we weren’t sure how Covid was going to affect Halloween, people planned a lot of alternative activities for kids, and lots of these activities involved pumpkins.
There are so many good things about carving pumpkins… not only is it fun and creative, but it’s quite delicious! The flesh can be cooked, seasoned and eaten like squash or in pies, or even like custard. The seeds can be seasoned and toasted and eaten, shell and all! (My favorite way to eat them is with curry powder.)
Even if you don’t like to toast and eat the seeds, don’t chuck them! These can be excellent sources of food for birds and squirrels who are beginning to stash away treats for the winter. Toast or dry the seeds and set them out for critters to pack away.
Even if you do none of the above, consider adding your jack-o-lantern (and its guts) to your compost pile instead of to your garbage bin. This nutrient rich material makes an excellent addition to your compost and will help enrich your garden next spring when decomposed and ready to spread.