Composting Pumpkins

Author: Tucker Smith

Halloween is over, which means the jack-o-lanterns decorating Rye’s porches will soon find themselves in the trash (or possibly in the mouths of sneaky squirrels). This fall, instead of throwing your pumpkins in the garbage, try composting them!  

Composting pumpkins is a great way to add nitrogen, moisture, and vitamins to your compost bin––but be careful not to compost any inorganic material. Decorations like paint or glitter should be carefully scraped/carved off before you compost your pumpkin.  All the organic parts of your pumpkin are compostable, from the skin to the stem and even the seeds. Be aware, though, that pumpkin seeds might sprout if you leave them in your compost bin, so if you’d rather take them out, try roasting the seeds with some salt for an autumnal snack!  

Pumpkins decompose more efficiently in smaller pieces, which means you can invite your kids or friends to help you smash your pumpkin into bits.  You can add pumpkins to compost bins, worm bins, or even your own yard, if you cover the pumpkin chunks in leaves and soil. So even though the leaves are orange, let’s try going green by recycling our pumpkins this November!