AN URGENT plea has been made to people in Salisbury to avoid placing discarded pumpkins in woodland areas this Halloween.

It comes from the nature charity The Woodland Trust.

A spokesperson for the charity said that people think they are doing a good thing by not binning them in landfill and instead leaving them for nature.

"But pumpkin flesh can be dangerous for hedgehogs, attracts colonies of rats, and also, has a really detrimental effect on woodland soils, plants, and fungi", they said.

"We can’t leave dumped pumpkins to rot so we end up with an orange mushy mess to deal with at many of our sites.”

This has become an increasingly worrying trend.

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They added: "Hedgehogs are opportunistic eaters. During the autumn and early winter months, they have to build up fat reserves for hibernation. Pumpkins, although not toxic, can cause stomach upsets and lead them to be bloated and dangerously dehydrated which could be fatal.

"Jack-o-lanterns can be good for wildlife in small quantities in gardens, but not woodland or other countryside. We are urging people everywhere to make soup, or make a birdfeeder for your garden, but please don’t make a mess of the countryside!”