How Long Do Porch Pumpkins Last in Houston?

Shade and cover buy you weeks

Covered, shaded entries hold longest. Much of The Woodlands sits under heavy tree cover with deep, set-back porches, and displays there age noticeably more slowly than west-facing entries in newer Spring and Conroe neighborhoods that take full afternoon sun.

When we design an installation, we place the more delicate varieties — thin-skinned specialty and heirloom pumpkins — in the protected positions, and the hardier classic varieties where exposure is highest.

Keep them off wet ground

Moisture underneath a pumpkin, not heat above it, is what usually ends a display early. Pumpkins sitting directly on damp mulch or a sprinkler-fed bed soften from the base first. Hay bales, stone and dry porch decking all extend life.

If a pumpkin does begin to soften, removing it early protects the ones touching it.

When to install

Our installation windows run in late September and early October for exactly this reason: early enough to enjoy the whole season, late enough that a display is not fighting September heat for a month before anyone would call it fall.

Questions we get

Should I do anything to make them last longer?

Nothing is required. Keeping them dry underneath and out of standing water helps more than anything else you can do.

What happens at the end of the season?

Add post-season removal when you book and we return after the season to clear the entire display.