When the autumn display comes down
Pumpkin AfterlifeSend every pumpkin and gourd to its next life
Keep it on show while it lasts, cook it if you can, compost it if you cannot - and the bin only when nothing else will take it.
1 Your home free
2 Your pumpkins free
Up to 6 pumpkins or gourds: what it is, the kind, whether it is carved, its finish, its condition, the days it has been on show and a short note if you like.
3 The yard free
4 Ask for the written routes
One run writes why each pumpkin goes where it goes and the job to do before it goes, then names the first thing to do. The page re-checks the reply against its own routes.
The routes - none yet
-The page's check
5 Saved displays
How each pumpkin is routed
The page checks, in order: painted, glittered, sprayed or glued - general bin, it can be neither eaten nor composted; the display staying up and the pumpkin whole and firm - keep on show; you cook pumpkin and it is whole, firm and not an ornamental gourd - kitchen; you have a compost heap - compost heap; you have a food-waste caddy - food-waste caddy; otherwise - general bin.
The pumpkin to deal with first is the leaving one with the highest urgency: mould 3, soft spots 2, frost-hit 2, carved +2, on show 14 days or more +1; on a tie, the earliest on your list. Clear today when any leaving pumpkin is carved or has soft spots or mould, clear this week otherwise, all staying when none leaves.
Safety: if in doubt, do not eat it - never eat a carved, soft, mouldy, frost-hit, painted or glittered pumpkin, or an ornamental gourd. Take out candles and wax before composting. Do not leave pumpkins out for wildlife. Check your own council's rules for food waste. Not professional or food-safety advice.