For long term storage, put
a thin amount of petroleum jelly on the exposed, sawed
edges. This prevents water from getting out. If water
gets out, your pumpkin will shrivel. Take a wet paper towel &
place it on the stem of the gourd. Pumpkins draw
moisture form the stem like a straw. Anytime your pumpkin
shrivels, soak it in a bath of cold water for one to
eight hours, longer is better. Over night doesn't hurt. Putting a little unscented
Clorox bleach in the water will prevent your pumpkin
from prematurely molding by killing off evil pumpkin
germs. Use a plant mister to spray
your pumpkin and keep it moist. If you put it in plastic
wrap to hold the water in and place it in the
refrigerator, not the freezer, you can keep the pumpkin
looking good for a long, long time. Once you remove a wet
pumpkin for display, you should immediately dry it off.
This prevents mold from having a chance to grow.
Cutting & Gutting a Pumpkin: A Gourd that’s Gored is not
Restored A carved pumpkin w/o
penetration of the inner core will heal itself & last
(with the tips state above) a healthy duration; a
“gored” gourd will have, at most, a 7-day life span. If you want to have your
carving lit, gut it from the bottom. A de-stemmed gourd
that gored is good 3 days maximum. Remove the seeds & “squiggleys”:
bugs like them best. Shave off the inside of the
core. Take a flashlight & place it on the carved
sections. When you can see light, on the inside of the
carved areas, take a teaspoon & shave the area inside
the gourd as to let more light out. Light the inside of
the gourd & see if enough light is penetrating to the
outside of the shell. Once you have the light you
want, cut a 1” x1” square behind the stem to act as a
chimney for the heat of the light/ candle to escape.
Lighting a Pumpkin Three tea candles provide
acceptable light without too much heat. A 40-watt, uncolored bulb
on a electric cord works very well. Keep the bulb low or
off to the side so that it illuminates the inside back
wall of the pumpkin. Another option: take white
Christmas lights & wrap them around a toilet paper core.
Colored lights are also good for various effects.
Photographing a Pumpkin
The flash is not a good
idea with a lit gourd. With the pumpkin lit, ideally in
a mostly darkened room, take a picture of the pumpkin
without using a flash. 400 ASA speed film works well,
you can use 200 ASA if you let the shutter stay open
longer. For great shots, use a zoom lens. This will
change the focal distance, bluring the background, but
keeping the pumpkin sharp. Ideally, a completely black
background works well. If you are trying to catch a rear
projection, use a piece of dark, colored posterboard
fold into thirds (with the center section acting as a
screen and the flaps for support).
