ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — So your carved pumpkin is beginning to rot, is it?
Or maybe you bought a few to simply decorate your home and it's time to get rid of them. There are better ways to dispose of your unwanted pumpkins than trashing them, Waste Management says.
Instead of throwing it in the trash and hundreds of pumpkins ending up in landfills, experts say compositing or burying your pumpkin can be helpful to the Earth.
Adding a pumpkin to a compost bin can enrich the soil over time because pumpkins count as organic waste. Just make sure to remove any decorations or pumpkin seeds before tossing them in the pile.
Burying your pumpkin is another option many are not familiar with. Waste Management says the "pumpkins will eventually break down and enrich the soil, therefore improving the health of the flowers and plants in your garden."
Ever thought of donating your pumpkins? Some zoos accept pumpkins that are not rotten. Many zoo animals eat pumpkins and zoos across the nation oftentimes host pumpkin smashing soirees for the animals.
If you live in an area where you don't mind leaving some pumpkin pieces behind in your own yard, Mental Floss said cutting the pumpkin into smaller pieces and leaving it for wildlife such as deer, squirrels and other small critters can help the environment.
While it may seem easiest to dump the pumpkin in the trash can, keep in mind that pumpkins that decompose in landfills eventually emit methane gas, according to World Economic Forum, which is "more than 20 times the warming effect of carbon dioxide."
In the Tampa Bay area, there's a list of locations where you can donate your unwanted pumpkins.