Go Green This Halloween: Smash Your Pumpkins!

Saturday November 7, 2020 is the big day to smash your pumpkins! Every year, the Saturday after Halloween, SCARCE coordinates pumpkin collections. Locations all around the western suburbs will be accepting your no-longer-needed pumpkins for composting. Keep your pumpkin out of a landfill and provide rich-nutrients to the soil. Don’t forget to remove candles and any added decorations (paint is okay!) from your jack-o-lantern before dropping it off at one of these convenient locations.

We’e also included a few extra events happening on other days, so make sure to check those if November 7 doesn’t work with your schedule.

2020 Pumpkin Smash Events

Pumpkin Shoot (Hidden Oaks Nature Center, Bolingbrook)
November 1, 2020 | 12:00pm – 2:00pm
Register in advance.

Jack-o-Lantern Recycling (Oswego)
November 1, 2020 | 1:00pm – 3:00pm

Pumpkin Smash at SCARCE
800 S Rohlwing Road
Addison IL 60101
November 7, 2020 | 9:00am – 12:00pm

SCARCE Pumpkin Smash at Bartlett METRA Parking Lot
120 E. Railroad Street (enter from Eastern and Bartlett Avenue)
Bartlett, IL 60103
November 7, 2020 | 9:00am – 12:00pm

SCARCE Pumpkin Smash at Bensenville Public Works
717 E. Jefferson Street
Main Parking Lot
Bensenville IL 60106
November 7, 2020 | 9:00am – 12:00pm

Pumpkin Smash at Hinsdale South High School
7401 Clarendon Hills Road
Student Parking Lot
Darien, IL 60561
November 7, 2020 | 9:00am – 11:30am

SCARCE Pumpkin Composting at the Elmhurst Public Works Facility
985 South Riverside Drive
Elmhurst, IL 60126
November 7, 2020 | 9:00am – 12:00pm

SCARCE Pumpkin Smash at Pushing the Envelope Farm
1700 Averill Road
Geneva IL 60134
November 7, 2020 | 9:00am – 12:00pm

Pumpkin Smash at St. Mark’s Episcopal Church
393 North Main Street
Hillside Parking Lot
Glen Ellyn, IL 60137
November 7, 2020 | 9:00am – 12:00pm

Pumpkin Smash at Village Green Garden Plots
Village Green Park
130 S. Lambert Road
Glen Ellyn, IL 60137
November 7, 2020 | 9:00am – 11:00am

Pumpkin Smash at the La Grange Park Public Works
937 Barnsdale Road
LaGrange Park, IL 60526
November 7, 2020 | 10:00am – 12:00pm

Pumpkin Smash in Lisle
925 Burlington Avenue
Commuter Parking Lot C, south of Village Hall
Lisle, IL 60532
November 7, 2020 | 9:00am – 12:00pm

Pumpkin Smash Composting at Ron Ory Community Garden Plots
811 S. West Street
Naperville, IL 60540
November 7, 2020 | 9:00am – 12:00pm

The Great Pumpkin Smash at Barrie Park
1011 South Lombard Avenue 
Oak Park, IL 60304 
November 7, 2020 | 4:00pm – 5:00pm

Pumpkin Smash at Roosevelt Middle School
7560 Oak Avenue
Playground on Jackson/Oak
River Forest, IL 60305
November 7, 2020 | 9:00am – 12:00pm

Catapult a Pumpkin by Will County Green
Lewis University
Parking Lot south of Main Entrance
1 University Parkway
Romeoville, IL 60446
November 7, 2020 | 9:00am – 12:00pm

SCARCE Pumpkin Smash at St. Charles Public Works
1405 South 7th Avenue
St. Charles, IL 60174
November 7, 2020 | 9:00am – 12:00pm

Pumpkin Smash at Tinley Park Park District
Community Park Parking Lot
Tinley Park, IL
November 7, 2020 | 9:00 am – 11:00 am

SCARCE Pumpkin Composting at the Villa Park Environmental Concerns Commission
20 S. Ardmore Avenue
Villa Park IL 60181
November 7, 2020 | 9:00am – 12:00pm

Pumpkin Smash at Warrenville Park District
3S260 Warren Avenue
Warrenville, IL 60555
November 7, 2020 | 9:00am – 12:00pm

Pumpkin Smash at the First United Methodist Church of West Chicago
643 East Washington Street
West Chicago, IL 60185
November 7, 2020 | 9:00am – 1:00pm

Pumpkin Smash at the Western Springs Recreation Center
1500 Walker Street
Western Springs, IL 60558
November 7, 2020 | 9:00am – 12:00pm

Pumpkin Smash at the Westmont Public Library
428 North Cass Avenue
Westmont, IL 60559
November 7, 2020 | 9:00am – 12:00pm

Pumpkin Smash hosted by City of Wheaton Environmental Improvement Commission
SW corner West Liberty Drive & South Carlton Avenue
Commuter Lot #9
Wheaton, IL 60187
November 7, 2020 | 9:00am – 12:00pm

Pumpkin Smash at Camp Greene Wood
3155 71st Street
Enter through Gate #1
Woodridge, IL 60517
November 7, 2020 | 6:00pm – 8:00pm

It’s getting chillier, but there’s still plenty of outdoor family fun to be had! Tag us on Instagram (or use #mykidlist) to show off your autumn adventures.