The first Roosevelt Island Pumpkin Smash took place last Saturday on the Manhattan Park lower lawn.

As previously reported by Roosevelt Island resident and iDig2Learn Founder Christina Delfico:

… the 2017 Pumpkin Smash on Roosevelt Island becomes part of the Department of Sanitations official citywide efforts to reduce landfill waste. This is historic and it is happening right here, be a part of it!

This event is made possible by RIOC, NYC Compost hosted by BigReuse, Manhattan Park, Roosevelt Island Garden Club and iDig2Learn

In Collaboration with 217PTA, RI Parents’ Network, Island Kids, Girl Scouts, Gristedes, Wengerd Farm, RIRA, RIYP, NYC Ferry Operated by Hornblower, Cornell Tech and RI Explorers

Children, families and anyone with a pumpkin, squash or gourd to recycle for compost can come smash pumpkins, eat pie and drink apple cider from our Wengerd farm market and enjoy coffee donated by Gristedes….

… We hope everyone will learn that plant based materials, like pumpkins, can be composted and returned to the earth rather than trashed and trucked to landfill….

Ms Delfico and her friend Maria describe the Roosevelt Island Pumpkin Smash

Here are some more scenes of the fun times at the Roosevelt Island Pumpkin Smash. The Pumpkin Smash starts on top of a ladder,

the smashed pumpkins then get placed in a bucket for more crushing

and finally put in a compost basket to be taken away for composting and returned to a NYC Park

or other green space. The Roosevelt Island Pumpkin Smash also had fun for the kids playing in the leaves

and compost lessons from the Roosevelt Island Garden Club

and drawing with iDig2Learn

and a lucky winner of a 30 day free pass from NYC Ferry Operated by Hornblower.

It was a very nice Roosevelt Island day. Good job by all.