Grow a Pumpkin
Grow a small pumpkin over the summer of 2027, and watch it fly in the fall.
Sign-ups open by April 2027, once our fall launch events are confirmed. We’ll only ask families to grow pumpkins once we know we can launch them. Get on the list for a reminder.
Every trebuchet needs ammunition. Through our Pumpkin Providing Partners program, families, classrooms, farms and neighbors grow the pumpkins we launch.
How it works
- Sign up (a family, a class, a farm or an organization).
- Pick up a free grow kit, or build a planter box at a spring library workshop.
- Plant after the last frost, from late May to early June.
- Keep a growth log over the summer.
- Bring your pumpkin to the fall weigh-in and launch.
What’s in a grow kit
- Seeds for small pie or sugar pumpkins (about 2–8 lb), sized for our trebuchets
- Potting soil and compost
- Planter box materials or a large fabric grow bag
- A growth log and our growing guide
What you’ll learn
How a pumpkin grows from flower to fruit (and why bees matter), how soil and compost feed it, how to measure and graph growth, and how a pumpkin’s weight changes how far it flies.
Growing calendar
| By April 2027 | Sign-ups open, once our launches are confirmed |
|---|---|
| April–May | Build a planter box or pick up a grow kit |
| Late May–June 10 | Plant after frost, once the soil is warm |
| July–August | Vines run, flowers bloom, pumpkins grow |
| Mid-September–early October | Harvest before a hard frost |
| Fall 2027 | Weigh-in and launch |
Pumpkins sprawl. The planter box is just where your pumpkin starts: vines can run 10–15 feet or more across the lawn, so plan for open, sunny space.
Guides to print
- How to Grow a Pumpkin (2 pages): seeds, planter-box plans, soil, spacing, timeline and care.
- For farms (1 page): grow a few extra pumpkins, or donate unsold ones after Halloween.
Where the pumpkins go
After the weigh-in, the pumpkins fly at our fall launch events, ideally including the November Pumpkin Smash, and then they’re composted. More about the launches →
Get on the list
We’ll email you when pumpkin sign-ups open.