Pumpkins are often used as decorations in the fall, but they will eventually get soft and rot. But rotten pumpkins don’t have to end up in the trash. There are great ways to recycle them and make sure they are still useful, even if they aren’t the prettiest decorations anymore.
6 Easy Ways to Use Rotten Pumpkins Again
When pumpkins start to get soft and aren’t as nice to decorate with, try these…
- Pumpkins can be added to a compost pile in an easy way. Pumpkins will break down faster if you cut or break them up. Then they will be ready to add rich nutrients to a spring garden or flowerbed.
- How to Make an Easy Bird Feeder: Cut a carved pumpkin in half and put birdseed in each half. You now have a quick bird feeder. Birds will also eat the flesh of the pumpkin, even if it is a little soft.
- Offer Farm Feed: Give an old pumpkin that is still mostly firm to a local farmer as a treat for his cows, pigs, or other animals. Animals shouldn’t eat pumpkins that are completely rotten, but they can eat fruit that is just starting to get soft.
- Provide Treats for Zoos: Old pumpkins can be used as treats or fun for the animals at many zoos and wildlife rehabilitation centers. Pumpkins are good for sloths, apes, bears, fruit bats, meerkats, and many other animals.
- Plant It: If you don’t have a compost pile, you can still compost pumpkins by burying them in the yard. You can put the rotting pumpkins anywhere that needs more nutrients, or you can bury them in the garden and they will break down on their own.
- Study the Cycle: Use a pumpkin that is going bad as a science project by looking at how it breaks down. Use different types of soil or different additives to speed up or slow down the process, and learn what affects how organic matter breaks down.
Before Putting Pumpkins to Use
No matter how you decide to use a soft or rotting pumpkin, make sure the flesh doesn’t have any wax or ash buildup on it. This can be harmful to animals and won’t break down well in compost. In the same way, pumpkins shouldn’t have any paint, glitter, or other decorations on them. Once they are cleaned, however, it is easy to turn a rotting pumpkin into something beautiful again because it can be reused and recycled.