Smashing success at Naperville pumpkin collection event

It took only an hour Saturday for organizers of Pumpkin Smash 2018 in Naperville to exceed last year's total when it came to pumpkins dropped off for composting at the Ron Ory Community Garden Plots.

The Naperville Park District teamed with SCARCE (School and Community Support for Recycling and Composting) for the second annual event, giving residents a chance to dispose of their Halloween pumpkins in a way that keeps them from landfills, reduces greenhouse gas emissions and creates a natural fertilizer for the garden.

Pumpkin dropped by Saturday was weighed, tented and then crushed in the ground. More than 1[ads1],000 pounds of pumpkin was composted last year's Pumpkin Smash.