“Who helps the little pumpkins cross the road to school?”/“The crossing gourd.”

A popular fall riddle about school crossing guards and pumpkins is:
 
Q: Who helps the little pumpkins cross the road to school?
A: The crossing gourd.
 
“Yield to the crossing gourd”—with a link to a picture of a pumpkin—was posted on Twitter on November 27, 2010. The riddle has been cited in print since at least 2012.
 
Digital art of “The Friendly Crossing Gourd” was posted on Reddit on July 12, 2016.
     
 
Twitter
borneolegion
‏@borneolegion
yield to the crossing gourd: d-faith-k has added a photo to the pool:
I thought I would take some fall sunset ... http://bit.ly/eOHHMG
8:23 PM - 27 Nov 2010
 
Canada Free Press
Questions We re Often Asked: What to do with Your Giant Pumpkin
By Wes Porter —— Bio and Archives October 9, 2012
(...)
Isn’t it dangerous for pumpkins to cross a road? No, they always wait for a crossing gourd
 
Twitter
Burgh Fan
‏@BurghFanNJ
Corny Joke of the Day: Who helps the little pumpkins cross the road to school?—The Crossing Gourd.
5:26 AM - 14 Sep 2014
 
Twitter
Kinghorn Gardens
‏@kinghorngardens
#RiddleMeThis Who helped the little pumpkins cross the road to school?
The crossing gourd! #FallFunny
12:37 PM - 25 Sep 2014
 
Twitter
K.C. Comet
‏@KCComet
Who helps little pumpkins cross the road to school? 
The crossing gourd!
Happy Fall Y’all!
#worldsfunniestcomet
7:09 AM - 1 Oct 2014
 
Best Blog for Kids Who Hate to Read
Fall Jokes and More
October 3, 2014 Gail Terp
(...)
Who helps the little pumpkins cross the road to school?
The Crossing Gourd
 
Twitter
B$AP
‏@bryanajuana
How does a pumpkin cross the road? A CROSSING GOURD
9:41 AM - 25 Jun 2016
   
My Town Tutors
Fall Jokes: Top 25 Fall Jokes
Posted on September 22, 2016 by mmolloy
(...)
24. Who helps the little pumpkins cross the road to school?… The Crossing Gourd.
 
Orange County Department of Education—The Funding Tree (October 4, 2016)
Pg. 1, col. 1:
Pun-Kins: Punny Pumpkin Jokes
(...)
Who helps little pumpkins cross the road safely? The crossing gourd! What do you call a little pumpkin who doesn’t listen to the crossing gourd? Squash!