A lot of people smash pumpkins for cheap thrills.  Some people make a serious sport out of it, construct catapults and cannons, then compete with one another for height and distance...

But some people smash pumpkins to save the planet!



That's right.  I went to the Linden-Bushwick Community Garden in Brooklyn a few days ago to spend an afternoon destroying pumpkins.  After we made the pumpkins go splat, we put them in the garden's compost bin along with food waste collected from neighbors and local businesses. 

In a few weeks, the waste will be fertile soil to plant vegetables in.  Next year, the Bushwick Farmers Market will be selling vegetables grown in our pumpkin compost.
 

These pumpkin guts look nasty, but they're going to turn into fresh produce soon enough!

Every vegetable that gets grown locally keeps a delivery truck off the road, and every plant grown in composted soil saves a few pounds of food waste that would have gotten buried in a dump forever. 

I wasn't kidding when I said we were saving the world!  Check the video, and I bet you'll want to start composting too.  I really haven't had so much fun in months.


Watch for the chainsaw (seriously).


Big thanks to Earth Matter for organizing the event!  Check out their website for a list of upcoming compost events and a great statement about the importance of composting.