It all began this morning after I spotted a pot of unruly Corkscrew Grass sitting on a shelf in a grocery store. I thought to myself, “That would make a great head of hair for something.” Then in a Martha Stewart-moment, I turned my shopping cart around and went outside to find a head, or a pumpkin to be more specific. After selecting three “perfect” pumpkins and taking them home, the five-year-old in me began sawing away at them with no special design in mind. That’s not to say, though, that I didn’t have a purpose in mind. With a pumpkin carving saw in hand, I cut classic sawtooth edges around the tops of each pumpkin. And after a gentle tug on each stem, the lids came off to reveal a stringy mass and a cache of seeds. I imagined this must be similar to what a neurosurgeon feels after he’s removed a piece of skull and gets his first look into the brain!
Although a session of pumpkin carving interrupted my morning schedule, I felt very satisfied after I put my three pumpkin flower pots on my door steps. Nothing ingenious or original about this project, but the look of autumn has finally come to my house!
Pumpkin Flower Pots
Materials:
Pumpkins
One plant for each pumpkin
Tape measure
Push pin
Knife or pumpkin carving saw
Bowl for seeds
Wood excelsior, optional
Directions:
1. Wash and dry exteriors of pumpkins.
2. Decide which plant will go into which pumpkin.
3. Measure diameter of the top of each potted plant container.
4. With tape measure, center the number of inches of the pot’s diameter across the pumpkin top. Using a push pin, poke holes in the pumpkin to serve as a cutting guide.
5. Carefully cut a sawtooth pattern around the top.
6. Remove lid and scoop out seeds. Save the seeds for roasting or making Pumpkin Brittle.
7. Clean inside of pumpkins thoroughly. Using a spoon’s edge, scrape the sides of the pumpkins interiors until all stringy fibers are gone. Put that stringy stuff into your compost pile!
8. Cut a hole in bottom of the pumpkins, around the blossom spot, for plant drainage.
9. Either take the plant out of the pot and plant it directly into the pumpkin – recognizing that after Halloween, you are going to plant the whole thing, pumpkin and all, into the ground – or position the potted plant, plastic pot and all, into the pumpkin. If you find the pot does not fit, take a sharp knife and trim away some of the pumpkin flesh on the inside.
10. It’s optional, but I elected to put a little wood excelsior between the edges of the pots and the pumpkins to soften the look.
Update: These pumpkin pots will last longer if you spray the interiors with a disinfectant like Lysol before placing potted plants inside them.
Enjoy!
What about this? 
These are so clever and festive!