raises the hammer to lay waste to
a gourd during the Pumpkin Smash
on Saturday, Nov. 5, at Coyote Run
Golf Course in Flossmoor.
(Bill Jones/H-F Chronicle)
If attendees had any quibbles about this year’s Pumpkin Smash, it is that the gourds remained fairly grounded on Saturday, Nov. 5.
Eileen Nutley, of Homewood, brought her child after hearing about the cherry picker used last year to drop pumpkins and let gravity take care of the destruction.
Dave Bruni, of Flossmoor, came back with his son and neighbor after having fun seeing pumpkins fall from the bucket drop last year. But the lift was nowhere to be found because of high winds this year.
“With the weather, we couldn’t have our catapult and bucket drop, but at least we get to smash pumpkins this year,” said Carrie Malfeo, part of the Chicago Southland Green Committee overseeing the event.
Both Nutley and Bruni said their children were having a great time busting up this year’s jack-o’-lanterns the old-fashioned way — with a giant mallet — at the annual Pumpkin Smash held at Coyote Run Golf Course in Flossmoor. Liz Castaneda, of Homewood, joined the delighted chorus, noting she came out last year and returned in 2022 with her daughter. They and the many others who braved the elements were having a blast.
A large pumpkin past its prime holds an expression of concern moments before a hammer sends it to the compost heap. (Bill Jones/H-F Chronicle)
“You have to get rid of your pumpkins anyways,” Castaneda said. “Why not do it in a fun way? It’s a great way to spend a Saturday morning.”
In its sixth year, the Pumpkin Smash gave area residents a three-hour window to bring pumpkins past their Halloween prime to Coyote Run. There, they used the mallets to smash gourds atop either a wood platform or a stump.
All of the scraps went into a bin donated by Homewood Disposal, which was also scheduled to deliver the pumpkins to Possibility Place Nursery in Monee for composting. The purpose of the annual event is to keep pumpkins out of landfills, where they create environmental concerns. With this event and other efforts like it, the pumpkins ultimately go back into the soil.
“We’re building a tradition with some families to come out, which is a good thing,” Malfeo said.
Following the introduction of Rubicon Trick or Trash at last year’s Pumpkin Smash, candy wrappers were once again collected for recycling through the special program. Candy wrappers cannot be recycled through curbside pickup. But Trick or Trash offers a process similar to TerraCycle for what Malfeo called a “hard-to-recycle item.”
In addition to the Chicago Southland Green Committee and Homewood Disposal, the Pumpkin Smash was sponsored by the Homewood Science Center. For more information, visit scarce.org/pumpkins.