Pumpkins in Pittsburgh . . . there is no more beautiful place on earth than the mountains of Southwestern Pennsylvania in fall! Colorful leaves drape the hillsides where fogs and mists soften the scene. I love fall, halloween and pumpkins!
A few years back to stablize erosion on the hillside behind our house, we built a compost pile. That it would provide a way to produce enriched soil was a bonus. So year one, we tossed grass clippings, raked leaves and leftover pumpkins from Halloween. The next spring a pumpkin vine volunteered for duty and we were able to harvest a single pumpkin!
From that point on we embraced growing pumpkins in our compost pile. From Halloween until Thanksgiving, my husband is on a mission to gather every pumpkin he can find to add to the pile! We supplement our pumpkins with torn bags of garden soil and composted cow manure we get at low cost from Home Depot. Our efforts have been rewarded with bigger and stronger vines each year and beautiful pumpkins!
