Late last November, when the Halloween pumpkin on the porch had gotten soft, I decided to just bury it. Dig a deep hole, plunk it in, and cover it up. Cheap composting. No carry-away trash, and no pile turning and aerating effort. I forgot all about it.
As of this spring I have an awesome pumpkin patch at that very spot. After thinning the fifty or so sprouts that came out of the buried pumpkin, I have a square yard or two of vibrant vines. Now, it's in a pretty shady place, so I can't hope for much, but the flowers are plentiful, and the greenery is lush.
Pumpkin planting would be a marvelous post-Halloween project for kids, but I've never heard it done before.
I've been a bit surprised not yet to have seen any pumpkins trying to form on my vines. Are Halloween pumpkins sterile? Perhaps they need sun to fruit out properly? Fortunately, there seems to be an abundance of recipes for pumpkin blossoms.