The Great Pumpkin is rising in Brooklyn.
A Park Slope man has turned the stoop of his brownstone home into a beloved Halloween destination as he has continues a tradition of displaying a massive pumpkin — with this year’s coming in at nearly 1,000 pounds.
Charlie Pigott recently hauled the mammoth fruit from Pennsylvania and used a forklift to place it outside his front door — where it has drawn crowds, from classes full of local kids to gawkers making a pilgrimage just to rub it for good luck.
“I wake every morning to the sound of laughing children outside talking about it. And a mom or a dad saying, ‘Get off the stoop!’ By the time I come out, I’m like, ‘You can go on a stoop! You can climb on the pumpkin! Take a picture and enjoy!’” said Pigott, 60.
The local real estate broker admits that this year’s pumpkin is roughly 100 pounds lighter than last year’s — theorizing that the summer’s heavy rain may have been to blame for the stunted gourds.
But he’s made up for the slight dip in size by planting several other pumpkins — ranging from 2 pounds to 120 pounds — and bales of hay across his 8th Avenue property.
The family tradition began after Pigott and his daughter Elizabeth stumbled upon a 100-pound pumpkin on the side of the road in Connecticut — which they dragged home and plopped on their stoop.
The neighborhood went wild, with a constant sea of children and gawkers swarming their front stoop for the chance to see the city spectacle.
After that, the tradition organically grew bigger and bolder every year.
With the help of his children, Pigott started seeking not only larger pumpkins, but ones that had the perfect orange hue and thick stem — which helps prevent early rotting.
The pumpkins have grown so heavy that Pigott has relieved the team of local teenagers who once helped him lift the gourds out of his car, and now relies on a forklift to get the job done.
The Park Slope Pumpkin made him a legend of the neighborhood, but it was about three years ago that northeastern farms caught wind of the pumpkin picker and started calling the Brooklynite with tips on the best scores of the year.
Pigott wouldn’t say how much the annual hunt costs him, but teased it was much less expensive than most people would guess — pointing to a 100-pound pumpkin he said was worth $50.
The tradition is priceless, he said, adding he is paid in “tremendous joy” of children and adults alike.
Some families take annual pictures in front of the pumpkins every year — almost as a marker for the children’s growth — and teachers take mini field trips from nearby schools to use the fruit as a learning tool about crops, the Brooklynite said.
Most people stroll by and rub the orange beast for good luck.
The Brooklynite has dreams of growing the display every year — and eventually getting some big enough that he can carve them out and turn them into edible boats that local kids can race in Prospect Lake.
“The pumpkin is a great thing for the neighborhood. It brings everybody together, and this is an act of love and gratitude to the community.”
Pumpkin lovers have until Thanksgiving to enjoy it before Pigott takes an ax to the monster and composts it.
And for anyone threatening to make any “It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Pigott” jokes, the Brooklynite warns he’s heard it dozens of times already.
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