How to Select a Pumpkin

That festive pumpkin will be in your home for at least a few days, so take the time to give your potential pumpkin a quick once-over.

Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

1. Envision the shape of the pumpkin that would best suit your jack-o'-lantern design. Go so far as to draw some simple faces on pieces of paper that you would like to carve in your pumpkin.

2. Go to your local pumpkin patch or pumpkin reseller. Don't go too early, since you want your pumpkin to be in good shape when Halloween arrives.

3. Make sure the pumpkin you choose is not bumpy, too unevenly textured or too weirdly shaped. It can be a gourd shape, round or oval, but the important thing is that it is easy to carve.

4. Choose a pumpkin that is big enough to be striking when lit inside, but not so big that it keels over when carved.

5. Examine the stem. If the gourd's stem is loose or has evidence of rotting, don't buy it.

6. Pick up the pumpkin and examine it from all sides. Reject any pumpkins with blemishes such as white mildew, brown stains or wormholes.

7. Knock on the pumpkin. It should sound hollow when ripe.

8. Barter for a lower price if you are buying many pumpkins, and if you are buying them close to Halloween.

9. Purchase your pumpkin or pumpkins.

on 11/22/2005 I have heard many times that Vaseline was perfect for coating all exposed parts of your pumpkin to increase its lifespan, but this year we have tried something far more effective. WD-40. If you can live with the smell for a couple of hours (it dies down rapidly if your pumpkin is outside) than its far easier to spray in than Vaseline and rubbing it in. Plus, its not weird.

on 11/22/2005 Find a small pumpkin, carve out a top, and clean out the innards. Fill the pumpkin with sugar. Put the top back on the pumpkin and seal with hot wax. Put the pumpkin under your bed (any dark place where it will go undisturbed will work). After one month, remove the top from the pumpkin and you should have your own homemade moonshine. The sugar pulls the moisture out of the pumpkin and the sugars break down into alcohol.

on 11/22/2005 Make sure the pumpkin's bottom is flat. If it is too uneven, the pumpkin can tip over onto it's side when you put it out for decoration.

on 11/22/2005 If you go a month early, your pumpkin will look a lot more scary when it starts to rot come Halloween. Getting the pumpkin earlier than this would be better if you're planning on carving a picture that should still be recognizable, for instance if it is a witch on a broom riding past the moon. Otherwise a scary face looks better on a older pumpkin.
If you're just starting out with pumpkin carving, getting a smooth surface pumpkin is best. If you're a veteran, and like making it as scary as possible, by all means go with the weirdly shaped bumpy ones. The experts will even go so far as to find a pumpkin that looks like the face they want to carve, like an old witch with a wart on her nose.

on 11/22/2005 Many home decor and craft-type stores carry very realistic capable fake pumpkins in varying shapes and sizes. These can be a great choice if you want your jack-o-lanterns to last longer or just want to avoid the pumpkin gut mess.