Taste
Fruit and vegetables picked at their natural peak are often at their juiciest and most flavourful.
🌍 Veggie Village
What’s in season?
A month-by-month guide to the fruit and vegetables that grow outdoors in each season, with a star food, a fun fact and a simple kitchen or garden idea for every month.
This month
January
🍎 Fruit
- Oranges & clementines
- Lemons
- Apples
- Pears
🥕 Vegetables
- Cabbage
- Kale
- Leeks
- Brussels sprouts
- Carrots
- Potatoes
⭐ Star of the month
Oranges & clementines
Oranges and clementines ripen in winter in sunny places such as Spain, Morocco and Florida, which is why they fill shops in January.
🧑🍳 Try this
Peel a clementine, count its segments, then share them out fairly with your family.
ℹ️ This calendar shows typical outdoor harvests in temperate places such as much of Europe and North America; apples, carrots and potatoes also keep well after harvest. In the Southern Hemisphere the seasons are roughly six months apart, and tropical places have wet and dry seasons instead. A local farmers’ market is the best guide to exact timing.
The whole year at a glance(Northern Hemisphere)
| Fruit / Vegetables | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oranges & clementines | January | February | November | December | ||||||||
| Lemons | January | February | March | December | ||||||||
| Strawberries | May | June | ||||||||||
| Cherries | June | July | ||||||||||
| Blueberries | July | August | ||||||||||
| Peaches | July | August | ||||||||||
| Watermelon | July | August | ||||||||||
| Melon | August | September | ||||||||||
| Apples | January | February | March | September | October | November | December | |||||
| Pears | January | September | October | November | December | |||||||
| Grapes | September | October | ||||||||||
| Chestnuts | October | November | ||||||||||
| Leeks | January | February | March | April | October | November | December | |||||
| Cabbage | January | February | March | October | November | December | ||||||
| Kale | January | February | March | April | October | November | December | |||||
| Brussels sprouts | January | February | November | December | ||||||||
| Spinach | March | April | May | |||||||||
| Broccoli | March | April | June | |||||||||
| Radishes | March | April | May | June | ||||||||
| Asparagus | April | May | ||||||||||
| Lettuce | April | May | June | |||||||||
| Peas | May | June | July | |||||||||
| Potatoes | January | February | May | June | October | November | December | |||||
| Cucumbers | June | July | August | |||||||||
| Courgettes (zucchini) | June | July | August | |||||||||
| Green beans | July | August | September | |||||||||
| Garlic | July | |||||||||||
| Tomatoes | July | August | September | |||||||||
| Sweetcorn | August | September | ||||||||||
| Sweet peppers | August | September | ||||||||||
| Aubergines (eggplant) | August | |||||||||||
| Beetroot | February | September | October | November | December | |||||||
| Carrots | January | February | March | September | October | November | December | |||||
| Pumpkins & squash | September | October | November |
Why follow the seasons?
Learning
Noticing what grows each month links food to weather, plants, pollinators and the people who farm.
Variety
Following the calendar is an easy way to try new plant foods all year instead of the same few.
Questions families ask
Why can I buy strawberries in winter?
Shops bring fruit from warmer countries or grow it in heated greenhouses, so many foods are on sale all year. This calendar shows when each one naturally ripens outdoors.
Is this calendar right where I live?
It is a general guide for temperate climates. Switch to the Southern Hemisphere view for places such as Australia, New Zealand, Argentina or South Africa, and check a local market for exact timing.
Do frozen and tinned fruit and vegetables count?
Yes. Frozen and tinned produce can be a handy part of a varied diet. When you can, choose options without added sugar or lots of added salt.