How to Prevent a Halloween Pumpkin from Rotting

Once you have carved a Halloween pumpkin using stencils, prevent the jack o lantern from rotting away with mold and mildew by:

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• jack o lantern
• bleach

1. While you may want to add a preservative to your freshly carved jack o lantern, perhaps the best thing to do is nothing at all. Adding certain preservatives (glue, vinegar) cause pumpkins to decay even quicker!

2. If you do choose to preserve a pumpkin, try " Pumpkin Fresh Spray " which seals the pumpkin inside and causes the pumpkin to last 100% longer. For more information, check out www.pumpkinfresh.com This spray is expensive, $4.95 per bottle, so let's explore cheaper alternatives.

3. 
   Pumpkin Carving

   Soak the pumpkin in bleach solution, specifically Chlorox Clean-Up Cleaner with Bleach. This will prevent the pumpkin from rotting early. For full details, visit
   http://www.myscienceproject.org/pumpkin.html on a science project.

4. 
   Jack o Lantern

   While I have not personally tested this, I have heard that hairspray prevents a pumpkin from rotting on the inside. Be careful using hairspray with tea lights as it may become flammable.

Tips & Warnings

• Keep lit jack o lanterns away from doors and walkways. Children can easily knock the pumpkins over and catch themselves on fire.
• If you choose to use the Pumpkin Fresh Spray, make sure you spray the entire pumpkin including the underside of the pumpkin lid.
• Do not use vinegar to preserve a pumpkin – it attracts flies.
• Do not use glue. Surprisingly, adding glue to a pumpkin will cause it to rot much quicker than doing nothing.
• Do not use WD40 as it may be flammable when a tea light is added to the jack o lantern!

Resources

• Clorox® Clean-Up Cleaner with Bleach
• Pumpkin Rotting Science Experiment
• Send a Free Halloween Greeting Card