How Long Before Halloween Can I Carve My Pumpkin?

A spooky face back lit by flickering candlelight adds a little extra Halloween magic to your front porch. Everyone likes making jack-o'-lanterns for the holiday, but it's a different kind of scary when the pumpkin starts to soften and develops mold. Ensure the pumpkin is still in peak freshness during the big event by waiting until three to five days before Halloween to carve your pumpkins. The best time to carve pumpkins is five to 10 days before Halloween. If you can't wait, you may be able to extend the pumpkin's lifespan with some preservation methods.

More than 200 species of pumpkin and squash are used for Halloween jack-o'-lanterns. When left intact, the pumpkin can last between eight to 12 weeks before rotting, if the pumpkin is healthy and disease free when picked. Carved Halloween pumpkins succumb to decay within five to 10 days of cutting and gutting them. Some preservation methods may be able to extend the lifespan of the jack-o'-lanterns.

Carved pumpkins rot from many causes. Cutting damages the firm outer skin, which protects pumpkins from bacteria, other organisms and the elements. Damage to the skin and allowing air to enter the cavity of the pumpkin through holes also leads to dehydration.

Small insects, such as fruit flies as well as mold spores can get at the soft exposed flesh, further softening it while eating away at the pumpkin from the inside out.

The addition of bleach can help slow down decay, when used in conjunction with a light application of petroleum jelly. After carving the pumpkin, pat the insides dry with a paper towel. Spray the inside walls and the sides of any holes cut in the pumpkin with bleach. Be careful not to spray the bleach on the outside of the pumpkin or on your skin.

Then, smear a thin layer of petroleum jelly over the insides and the walls of cut holes in the flesh. The bleach kills off organisms, and the petroleum jelly acts as a physical barrier to keep the bleach right where you placed it to begin with.

Rather than use chemicals, try a few natural preservation methods to extend that jack-o'-lantern's lifespan. Scrape out as much of the guts and seeds as possible. Clean the insides with a peppermint oil soap-and-water solution. Dry the inside of the pumpkin with a paper towel.

If you live in a hot climate, bring the pumpkin in at night and store it in the refrigerator in a plastic bag. Soak the pumpkin overnight in cold water or water the pumpkin by spritzing the insides every night with the peppermint soap solution to help keep it hydrated.