How to harvest pumpkins for decor and carving

When it comes to harvesting pumpkins, it’s easy to think you can just pick them off the vine, load them in a wagon and be on your way. But there are actually a few things you should know if you’re going to harvest pumpkins for decor or for carving. There’s a few things you need to wait for and a few things you should never do.

Since moving here to the farm we’ve always grown our own pumpkins. Even in 2021, when I hadn’t planned to grow any, we had pumpkins growing. To say they grow well here is an understatement. Our soil seems to make them happy and that makes me happy because I love growing pumpkins. See how we like to grow them on a pumpkin trellis {HERE}.

As out farm has gotten larger, I we’ve started growing our pumpkins in “fields”. This year we have a small field, but next year we’re planning on having a 1/4 acre filled with pumpkins. We have a cart I love {HERE} to pull them around in, but next year we might actually need a truck!

This week it was time to begin harvesting our pumpkins. How do I know? There’s a few ways to tell when pumpkins are ready to be harvested.

Harvest pumpkins when they’re fully mature

Ideally, you want to harvest pumpkins once they reach maturity. This means when they reach the predicted size for the variety you were growing and the skin will be nice and hard. This also means you should be harvesting pumpkins when skin of the pumpkin has turned it’s predicted color – orange, white, or even those other non-traditional, moody pumpkin shades. They will keep best this way.

Some people also like to knock on them to check that they’re hollow.

Don’t pick a small pumpkin that hasn’t reached maturity because you want a small pumpkin or a yellow pumpkin for decor. If you want a small pumpkin, or a certain color of pumpkin, grow that variety. If you pick a pumpkin too soon it will start to shrivel and be more susceptible to mold and pests.

Immature pumpkins have a soft green stem. As the plant starts to mature, the stem starts to turn yellow or brown.

The only time to harvest pumpkins before they are fully mature is if the plant has been attacked by bugs or if a frost threatens the crop.

Watch the foliage and pick a dry day

When harvesting pumpkins, you want to make sure you pick a dry day after the plants have started to die back. Now, a lot of people will tell you that the leaves won’t die back unless the plants are experiencing an attack from bugs or mildew or the weather turns colder. I’ve found mine tend to begin to brown when the plants have reached almost full maturity and the weather at night starts to dip into the 50’s. Basically, mine will turn brown right when they’re supposed to – at the end of growing season. This season we have had a lot of rain and the vines were just over it. I decided to take them as the vines were dying back and a few were starting to experience rot.

That said, if your plant is still green and growing, you can leave the pumpkins on the vine as long as you want.

Give the stem some room

To slow decay, harvest pumpkins with a few inches of their stem intact with sharp shears and leather garden gloves for traction. The same can be said with all squashes you harvest. These are the ones I use {HERE} for all our flowers and squashes.  Leave 3-6 inches of stem. This slows and reduced the chance of a microbial infection coming though the stem.

Use pruning shears to cut the pumpkin off the vine and NEVER use the stem of a pumpkin as a handle for lifting or moving a pumpkin. There’s a good chance it will break off and then again, be more susceptible to disease. Pick it up by it’s bottom instead.

Curing pumpkins

After you harvest pumpkins, you often want to cure them. This will make them last longer. Curing will reduce the amount of water in the pumpkin skin and helps to harden their skin. You can cure a pumpkin by simply leaving it outside, unwashed in the sunshine. This is how you often find pumpkins at the pumpkin patch. They’ve been cut off the vine and left in the field until you come by and “pick” them. The catch is that they need to be kept dry to cure for 7 days. This is nearly impossible here in the fall out of the field. They can be cured inside in a well ventilated area if the weather takes a turn. I can cure mine on my front porch, which has an overhang and it’s usually their final destination anyways. 🙂

Harvesting pumpkins for carving

When you’ve picking a pumpkin for carving, you want to make sure you follow all the rules above. If you’re at a pumpkin patch you probably won’t actually have to cut it off the vine. However, you should still look for the deep color, the hard skin and check that it is hallow. Avoid any bruised looking pumpkins

Make sure that the bottom of the pumpkin isn’t soft, which is a sign of infection or rot. The bottom should also be somewhat flat so it doesn’t roll on you. Again, make sure the stem is secure too.

Ideally, pick a pumpkin that has one side a little flatter. It will make it much easier to carve that side!

Thank you so much for visiting today, friends! I hope that you’re enjoying the fall season and that you found this post helpful. For more gardening tips, click {HERE}. Also, try out Homemade Pumpkin Bread, {HERE} and see what you can still grow in your fall garden {HERE}.