MAINE, USA — Whether you carved your pumpkins this year for Halloween or used them as fall décor, don’t throw them away; simply turn them into something new.
Skillin’s Greenhouses located in Brunswick, Falmouth, and Cumberland, shared on their website six creative ways to reduce, reuse, and recycle your pumpkins this year.
- Add them to your compost pile: Cut your old pumpkins into pieces to help them decay faster, making a nutrient-rich feed for your spring flower beds.
- Make some bird feeders: Cut your hollowed-out pumpkins into halves, fill them with birdseed, and set them around your yard. (The birds will also pick at the pumpkin flesh).
- Donate them to farms: Offer up your pumpkins to local farmers who will give them as treats to cattle, pigs, and other livestock.
- Wildlife support: Send whole pumpkins to zoos and wildlife rehabs, where animals can eat them or simply play with them.
- Bury them: If you don’t have a compost pile, but want to use your pumpkin as fertilizer, simply find a spot in your yard that needs extra nutrients and bury your pumpkin in the ground.
- School project: If your kiddos need a science project, have them study the pumpkin as it decays and try adding different types of soil to see which slows or speeds up the process. Who knows, maybe there's a blue ribbon at the science fair in their future.
Penny Jordan of Jordan Farms in Cape Elizabeth said they always donate their left-over pumpkins and tomatoes to the Saco River Wildlife Center.
“Jordan's Farm has been a huge supporter of the center with their left-over pumpkins! We are so grateful for them. All of our patients love to eat them!" Lauren Kennedy, director of development at Saco River Wildlife Center, said. "There are some really great health properties to pumpkins, and it also serves as enrichment for our patients."
Kennedy said they care for a variety of wild animals, including raccoons, squirrels, opossums, foxes, and more, who all appreciate the donation.
Skillin’s Greenhouses noted that before you donate or recycle your jack-o-lanterns, make sure there isn’t any wax buildup or ash residue, which can be toxic to animals and won’t compost well.
Kennedy added that donated pumpkins should be free from paint, bleach, or any other toxic chemicals.