Easiest DIY: Succulent-topped pumpkins

Photo courtesy Cheyenne Frontier Dayschuck-wagon cook-offs, and parades. July 17–26. cfdrodeo.com.

No carving necessary! Use the divot on top of a winter squash as a nook for succulent cuttings, and you’ve got yourself a festive design that lasts from Thanksgiving through the holidays (and beyond).

Taking inspiration from Chula Vista, CA-based Laura Eubanks of Design for Serenity, we’re loving succulent-topped pumpkins. The project is super easy, requires no carving (meaning no rotting or insects) and the finished results will last for months. Plus, when you’re ready to dismantle it, the succulents can be replanted.

Mostafa Hefni / Getty Images

Choose a pumpkin with a pronounced divot near the stem. Pro tip: White squash makes a seamless transition from Turkey Day to December holidays without getting maxed out on orange.

A little pinch here, a little snip there—no one will know. (Johanna Silver / Sunset Publishing)

Collect your decorations from your yard (or, ahem, from a walk around the ‘hood). Seed pods, succulent cuttings, dried flower buds, winter berries—they’re all fair game. Use spray glue to adhere sphagnum moss as a base layer (optional), and then craft glue for everything else. Enjoy!

Palo Alto homeowner Kathy Coutre throws a succulent-topped pumpkin decorating party every year. Here are this year’s creations, ready for doorsteps, mantles, and tabletops. (Photo by Kathy Coutre)