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Cloudy skies this morning followed by scattered showers and thunderstorms during the afternoon. Gusty winds and small hail are possible. High 72F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 60%..
Scattered thunderstorms early, then cloudy skies after midnight. Gusty winds and small hail are possible. Low 58F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 50%.
Updated: May 15, 2024 @ 4:01 am
Nothing says fall like pumpkins. But pumpkins aren’t just for jack-o-lanterns and pies any more. They can make striking planters as well as seasonal displays.
Some garden magazines advocate gutting a pumpkin and filling it halfway with potting soil. The flowering plant is then potted directly in the soil, with additional soil added to fill out the planting space.
However, the quickest, most straightforward way to create a beautiful pumpkin planter is to pick a pumpkin large enough to accommodate a flowering plant in a plastic pot. Make sure your pumpkin has a flat bottom so that it will set steadily on a step or table top.
Proceed to clean the pumpkin as you would for a jack-o-lantern. Scrap all the stringy innards and seeds out until you have a smooth, clean interior. You can cut a drainage hole. But with careful watering, this isn’t necessary.
Nest the potted flower into the pumpkin. Top with Spanish moss, if desired. Add to the display with autumn leaves, smaller gourds or hands full of acorns and nuts.
Another method avoids cutting the pumpkin all together. You can hot glue succulents directly on the top of the pumpkin. Use plants like burro’s tail (Sedum morganianum), hen and chicks (Sempervivum tectorum) and panda plant (Kalanchoe tomentosa).
What do you do at the end of the season?
Pumpkins that are cut to turn them into planters will usually last through Halloween (two to t weeks) before becoming messy. If the weather cooperatives, they can last well into January. At that point, you simply cut the top off the pumpkin and re-rooted the succulents.
Easy as pumpkin pie!
JD Walker is a magazine editor, published author, freelancer and former reporter with The Courier-Tribune. She lives in Randolph County and continues to write on her favorite topics, which include gardening, business and government affairs.
The following story appears in the Sept. 2020 edition of Alamance Living magazine. If you want to read more stories like this, pick up a copy of the magazine at various locations in Alamance County, or call 336-227-0131 to subscribe so issues will be mailed to your home.
This article originally appeared on Times-News: Pumpkins: They’re not just for carving
