That’s a big pumpkin

City earns honourable mention for hefty orange globe from compost

With Halloween approaching, aspiring pumpkin devotees may want to take a page or two from the City of Barrie’s ‘growth’ technique.

The Compost Council of Canada has planted an honourable mention on the city’s entry into its annual pumpkin growing contest, Grow ‘em Big with Compost. The objective is to grow large pumpkins using compost; the city’s pumpkin weighed in at a hefty 317 pounds, a mere 11 pounds off the winning entry.
“Barrie compost is produced from the leaf and yard waste collected throughout the municipality and it is rich in both organic and moisture content, which is key for the successful growth of certain plants such as pumpkins,” says Kelly Walker-Prince, environmental investigation and response supervisor.
The seeds for the pumpkins are supplied by the council in the spring, and participants can only use compost they produce to grow the pumpkins. The weigh-in is held in late September.
Compost is available at the city landfill for use by residents. The contest shows it’s fertile ground from which to grow.