Preventing Pumpkin Rot

Overview

Every Fall, families buy pumpkins and carve them. A problem that every family faces is that their carved pumpkins rot in a short amount of time. This is what gave me the idea to find a treatment that would keep a carved pumpkin from rotting for the longest amount of time. First, I researched what causes a carved pumpkin to rot. After my research, I found that bacteria had a major role in causing pumpkins to rot. Next, I researched treatments that slow down the rotting process of carved pumpkins. The three treatments that I decided to use for my experiment where borax, lemon juice and bleach as well as having a control. I carved the same size of triangle into each pumpkin. Each pumpkin was dipped in one of the treatments for ten seconds, except for the control. Data was taken daily using a three point scale that measured the amount of mold on each pumpkin. Pictures were taken of the pumpkins every three days. Results of the experiment indicate that borax preserves carved pumpkin for the longest amount of time. Lemon juice and bleach tied for preserving the carved pumpkin from rotting for the second longest amount of time. The control pumpkin rotted in the shortest amount of time. The pumpkin treated in borax took twice as long to rot than the pumpkin with no treatment at all.

Competition history

• AJAS 2019 Category not listed

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