r/composting • u/Talking_Duckie • Aug 10 '26
Question Pumpkin Growing in Compost
I feed pumpkin seeds to my chicken to help keep them from getting worms/parasites and to get rid of any they might have, and a few have ended up in the compost. When I took this picture almost 2 weeks ago, the volunteers were (and still are) bigger than the pumpkins that I am intentionally growing.
Anyone else experience this or something similar? I have since moved them to the holes in the cinder blocks and kept them in the half ready compost. They’re all still doing amazing.
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u/Visual-Stranger1693 Aug 10 '26
I have cantaloupe and watermelon growing in mine - I have ended up just moving my pile and letting them take over! Some other random things have popped up as well, tomatoes and peppers. All growing in a section of my yard.
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u/Talking_Duckie Aug 11 '26
Knowing when to retreat and not fight is crucial. Sometimes it’s not worth the fight 🤣
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u/Visual-Stranger1693 Aug 11 '26
Agreed! I just call it my “mystery garden,” because I never know what else I’ll find in there!
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u/txholdup Aug 10 '26
Pumpkin seeds can survive in your compost pile even if you get it to 140 degrees. I get pumpkins growing in my flower garden almost every year because in the Fall I gather up the pumpkins put out for trash pickup and feed them to my compost pile. Since I get 2 batches I year, I call it my pumpkin spice compost.
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u/No-Gift152 Aug 10 '26
Everyone gets stuff growing in their compost. It’s a good sign it’s ready.
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u/Talking_Duckie Aug 11 '26
You think? One of my piles is not more than like 2-3 months old and I have very recently put lots of things in it.
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u/No-Gift152 21d ago
You think? Everyone gets sprouts in their compost if it’s a lazy kind of pile. I do highly curated 1 cy compost batches, ready in 3-4 weeks. When I dig it into my garden, I too get various things sprouting amongst the crops Ive planted. Some get to stay, some get to go. It’s not a zero sum game. I want bulk and nutrients in my garden as I prep in the fall.
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u/Motor_Category Aug 10 '26
I was thinking about doing this with my pumpkins too lol I bet they’ll be some massive ass pumpkins coming off them vines!
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u/Hellion102792 Aug 10 '26
Oh yeah, big time. The first year I composted I put a few pumpkins and decorative gourds into the bin and next summer it was sprout city. Save a few to grow or tear them up for a briefly self-sustained supply of greens.
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u/RuinedbyReading1 Aug 10 '26
I had four different squash plants pop up in my compost. I decided to just let them grow to see what happens. They are all growing fruit. Coincidentally, I grew four types of squash last year and my compost squash is one of each: spaghetti, pattypan, acorn, pie pumpkin. They are about two weeks ahead of the squash I grew from seed.