Pumpkins

Midland Farmers Market

Photo:  Emmy Ulmschneider

By Emmy Ulmschneider and Debbie Roland, Master Gardeners

Each fall, walking around my neighborhood, I am amazed by the numbers and varieties of pumpkins that decorate our homes.  In November of 2022, we wrote about pumpkins, this native North and South American plant that has spread around the world.  https://www.westtexasgardening.org/post/pumpkins    In my walks, I can tour the world with the varieties I see:    Lakota, Long Island Cheese, Hubbard, Chioggia, Queensland Blue, Kuri, Red Warty Thing, Seminole, and Porcelain Doll.  All of these are edible with an incredible variety of tastes and uses and are valued in the countries where they arose and beyond.  At the Midland Downtown Farmers Market, the Saturday after Thanksgiving, I came home with three: Queensland Blue was imported in 1932 from Australia, Kuri arose in Japan and Porcelain Doll was developed in Yuma, Arizona in 2012. 

But these and other readily available pumpkins are more than decorations.  They can be baked into cookies, muffins and bread, roasted, stuffed with a variety of fillings, or used as a versatile ingredient in soups, casseroles, and pies.  They are also easily stored, becoming a fresh vegetable treat in the winter.  And that is before you try making your own roasted pumpkins seeds! 

But what happens to these edible delights once the holiday decorating season is over?  Some are spray painted and used as Christmas decorations but most, over 1. 5 billion pounds of pumpkins end up in our dumpsters and from there into our landfills; a sad end for a tasty treat.  According to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), food waste makes up about 24% of the material in our municipal solid waste landfills.  And in our landfills, food waste breaks down slowly, emitting methane gas emissions equivalent to more than 50 million gas powered passenger vehicles. 

If you can’t eat or home compost your pumpkins, put them to good use by feeding farm animals.  Pumpkins for Pigs, started in 2017, is now in 44 states and Canada.  Formed from a simple idea to reduce food waste, they divert edible foodstuffs from landfills to farms, animal sanctuaries, and rescue services thus reducing landfill food waste and providing a much-appreciated treat for livestock.  In addition to pumpkins, they accept a variety of fruits, vegetables, and other decorating holiday decorations including corn stalks, hay, straw and Christmas trees and wreaths.  They do operate in Texas, but our closest donation site is north of Lubbock, about two hours driving time from us.  For more see information see:   https://pumpkinsforpigs.org/    

So, this year, celebrate the holiday season by giving back.  Look beyond the holiday season and put your holiday decorations to good use.  Do you have a farming friend whose livestock could use a holiday pick me up?  Could you give back to someone with backyard chickens who has treated you with eggs?   If nothing else, you could start a home composting effort which benefits all of us by reducing landfill waste .   

If you have questions, call the AgriLife office in Odessa at 498-4071 or in Midland at 686-4700.   Additional information, and our blog for access to past articles, is available at westtexasgardening.org.  Click on “Resources”.