Pumpkin Smash Saturday - Chicago Composting Events 2023
NOTE: This article has been archived and may not be up to date.
Pumpkin Smash Events are returning, Saturday Nov. 4th!
The Chicago Department of Streets and Sanitation is partnering with community-based organizations and Illinois Extension to offer 10 Pumpkin Smash events across the city.
Don't Trash 'em, Smash 'em!
Pumpkin Smashes are family and earth-friendly events that support making compost out of Halloween pumpkins that would otherwise be rotting in a landfill.
Composting pumpkins saves landfill space and it also reduces greenhouse gas emissions. In landfills, rotting food like pumpkins and other organic matter produce methane, a powerful greenhouse gas. Landfills are our nation's 3rd largest producer of methane, following fossil fuels and enteric fermentation from livestock. (source: EPA)
Fun fact: Illinois is the nation's pumpkin capital, producing more pounds of pumpkins than the next five states combined.
All pumpkins from the Pumpkin Smash Events are turned into compost. Compost is a supreme, natural soil fortifier used by farmers and gardeners to grow healthier plants.
How To Participate
Gather your pumpkins and remove all decorations, candles, and paint before you arrive.
Visit one of the 10 neighborhood events (listed below) on Saturday, November 4th to compost your pumpkins... and smash them if you dare. MUAHHAHAHAHA!
You won’t be required to smash your pumpkin at the event, but you may want to give it a go. Taking out frustrations on a guiltless gourd is surprisingly satisfying.
Pumpkin Smash 2023 Chicago Events
All events take place from 10 am - 2 pm on Saturday November 4th, unless noted.
Plant Chicago, 4459 S Marshfield Ave.
Comer Crops Youth Farm, 7200 S Ingleside Ave.
Morton School of Excellence, 431 N Troy St.
Disney II Magnet School, 3815 N Kedvale Ave.
George Washington High School, 3535 E 114th St.
Solorio Academy High School, 5400 S St. Louis Ave.
Coonley Elementary School, 4046 N Leavitt St., hosted by the 47th Ward Office
Carl von Linné Elementary School, 3221 N Sacramento Ave.
Chicago High School for Agricultural Sciences, 3857 W 111th St.
Chicago Fire Station 70, 6040 N Clark St. (open 12 pm-4 pm), hosted by the Edgewater Environmental Coalition
If you subscribe to a compost pick-up service, check with your provider for their pumpkin composting policies, or just bring them to a Pumpkin Smash event.
Visit SCARCE for more Pumpkin Smash events outside of Chicago.
