The days are getting longer and warmer, it must be Halloween in South Australia. It’s only in recent years that it’s been celebrated here, and mainly with pumpkins and Trick or Treat. I like to keep it traditional, though, and last year I carved turnip lanterns. They were quite successful, so I thought I’d give it another go. In the picture below, you can see my two new turnips with my lanterns from last year looking on.
And now, creepily, as my new turnip lanterns develop faces, their ancestors move in closer to join them, looking for all the world like they’re passing on the wisdom they’ve gained over the past twelve months.
Just in time, they’re installed on the front door, with a friendly plastic pumpkin face to lure the unsuspecting Trick or Treaters closer.
And yes, we’re still in the middle of a pandemic, so treats are contactless and come with an advisory message to sanitise hands before choosing something.
Don't forget your shovel 
You say turnips but I’d call those swedes, and whem I lived in America they called them rutabaga. The smell of the flesh of the lantern scorched by the candle is an enduring childhood memory. Lovely to read how Halloween happens there for you.
Here, the turnips have white flesh and the swedes have yellow flesh. I always wondered what rutabaga was! And yes, that smell is very evocative!