Uhhh… you guys aren’t gonna guess what happened.
TL;DR surprise pumpkins
spoiler
After I rushed my little out of season pumpkins through and finished ripening them on the windowsill I left them there to cure and as ornaments. I had plans to pile them into a bowl and paint them as a still life.
But I saw one was rotting. I opened it up to save any viable mature seeds because as an heirloom variety they would be true to the parent plant. And some of the seeds were sprouting inside. 🌱
Opening up a second pumpkin that was rotting more sneakily, I found more. A lot in both were flat and hollow but so far I have about 32 normal seeds that might be usable and 15 already sprouted ones.
One might not come up because I accidentally buried it too deep in the potting mix and lost it… but one hasty late night potting session later these sprouts at least have a chance.
The least ripe fruit is also rotting but I’ll open it tomorrow. It’s unlikely the seeds in that will be developed enough to grow.
There are still 3 pumpkins that haven’t spoiled.
Unfortunately I already filled the big pots with flowers and what little ground soil I have is invaded by creeping grass and tree roots from shithead neighbours. I might see if my friend’s kid wants the seedlings and if I can beg a lift to donate the seeds to a seed library