When to Carve Pumpkins so They Don’t Rot Before Halloween
Some people really love fall and begin their spooky seasonal rituals in September. I’m not one of those people—I prefer to squeeze out the last bits of summer and pretend fall doesn’t exist until Halloween—but to each his own.
The problem with starting the celebration too early is that the mainstay of fall, the humble pumpkin , is really just a fruit, and the fruit gets old and gets ugly. If you carve too early, the jack-o’-lantern you carved weeks earlier will look terrible by the time Halloween comes around. Here’s a quick guide to help you time your pumpkin carvings correctly to keep these little cuties looking fresh, at least until Halloween is over.
Lifespan of a pumpkin and jack-o’-lantern on a shelf (or porch)
The good thing about pumpkins compared to other vegetation is that they will last quite a long time if you don’t hack them. If stored in a cool, dark place, they will keep for about two months. If you use pumpkins for cooking, you can store them on the countertop for several weeks without any problems. Only refrigerate them if you cut them into pieces. Think of them like avocados. Degradation begins only when you contact them.
Likewise, if you want to decorate with pumpkins, you can place them on the porch, fireside, or wherever for a few weeks in early October, and then carve them later. My family has always done this. The same pumpkins that graced our front porch in its entirety at the beginning of the season appeared again in cut-up form around Halloween. Of course, we lived in a cooler climate, so if you live somewhere where the fall is still very warm, this might not work. Pumpkins do best in temperatures between 50 and 55°F with little humidity.
Smaller pumpkins last longer, and you can extend their life by buying them in cool water and spritzing them with vinegar when you get them home.
When should you really carve a jack-o’-lantern?
If you’ve carved a pumpkin before, you know you have at most a week to enjoy it. There are ways to preserve it and give it a few extra days to keep it looking nice, such as cutting from the bottom to keep the stem intact, or using diluted bleach to wipe down the exposed edges, but these are not long-term solutions.
To extend the life of your carved pumpkin, make sure it’s large , fresh and pristine, and then carve it at most two to three days before you need it. In fact, if you want your jack-o’-lantern to look good on October 31st, carve it on October 30th. If you need jack-o’-lanterns in the weeks leading up to Halloween, consider purchasing smaller jack-o’-lanterns and saving the largest one. for the big day.