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Pumpkin on your porch? Here's what you can do with it now that Halloween is over
Don't toss that pumpkin just yet! You can put it to good use helping the environment and fighting food insecurity.
WASHINGTON - Instead of throwing out your jack-o'-lanterns or pumpkin decor just for them to end up in landfills, make the most of those leftover gourds!
Here's what you can do with those pumpkins instead.
Donate your pumpkins to a local farm
Animals LOVE eating pumpkins – pigs especially. In Northern Virginia, there are a number of farms that accept pumpkin donations to help feed their animals.
Here's a link of all the farms in Virginia that will accept pumpkin donations.
Compost your old pumpkins
FILE - A squirrel feasts on pumpkin seeds on Nov. 22, 2013. (Photo by Gordon Chibroski/Portland Press Herald via Getty Images)
More than two billion pounds of pumpkins will end up in landfills, according to Pumpkins for the People.
Instead of those pumpkins producing methane and contributing to greenhouse gas emissions, you can make sure that the pumpkins' nutrients return to the soil by composting them.
Compost Cab and Pumpkins for the People have a number of pumpkin and squash drop-off sites throughout the D.C. area.
Just remove all candles, wax or other decorations, cut the pumpkins into small pieces and bring them to the drop-off location in a compostable bag.