The Ultimate Guide to Seasonal Fruits and Vegetables

Your Guide to Seasonal Fruits and Vegetables · Late Spring Through Early Summer. While some produce will come into season early in spring, other ... VeggiesatFarmersMarketDeniseTaylor/GettyImages InThisArticle Expand Spring Summer Fall Winter Year-Round OverlappingSeasons LateSpringThroughEarlySummer SpringThroughFall LateSummerThroughFall FallThroughSpring FallandWinter WinterandEarlySpring BacktoTop Fruitsandvegetablesareattheirbestwhenthey'regrownandharvestedintheirnaturalseasonsanddon'ttraveltoofarbeforebeinggobbledup.Whetheryou'reanticipatingyourfavoritefoodorcuriousaboutwhatyou'llfindintheproducemarketrightnow,thislistingofseasonalproduceandtheirnation-wideharvestseasonswillhelp. Dependingonyourregion,growingseasonsandcropavailabilitywillvary.Inthewarmestareas,seasonsstartearlierandlastlonger.Someitemslikegreens,carrots,beets,andradishesmaybeharvestedyear-roundinthemosttemperateareas.Incolderzones,harvesttimesstartlaterandendsooner. Spring Astemperaturesbegintorisewiththedawningofspring,producebeginstoflourish.Theseearlybloomersaresomeofthehighlightsoftheseasonandmostareonlyavailableduringthistimeofyear.Ifyou'reafanofanyofthem,getthesefoodswhileyoucan! Artichokes Asparagus FavaBeans Fiddleheads GarlicScapes(GreenGarlic) Morels Nettles PeaGreens SnapPeas,SnowPeas,andPeaPods StingingNettles Summer Summeristhebiggestgrowingseasonoftheyear,regardlessofwhereyoulive.Youwillfindthebiggestvarietyandthebestfruitsandvegetablesduringthesewarmmonths.Lookforthesefoodsinproducesectionsatyourlocalgrocer,farmersmarkets,androadsidestands.Ifyouliketogarden,anyofthesewouldmakeexcellentadditionstoyourhomegrowncropsaswell. Basil Blackberries Blueberries Boysenberries,earlysummer Cantaloupes,latesummer Chickpeas(GarbanzoBeans),freshinsummeranddriedyear-round ChilePeppers Corn Cucumbers Gooseberries Mangos Marionberries Peaches PlumsandPluots Raspberries SummerSquash Tomatoes Watermelons ZucchiniandZucchiniBlossoms Fall Autumnisapeakseasonforcertainfruitsandveggiesandyou'llfindmanyofthesefeaturedatfallharvestfestivals.Keepinmindthatsomeofthosesummercropsextendintoorareharvestedinearlyfall,sothisshortselectionisbynomeansallthatyou'llfindinmarkets. Artichokes,earlyfall Cranberries Edamame Pears Pumpkins Quinces Winter Wintermaybecoldinsomeregions,butitisthepeaktimeforcitrusfruits.Thisisgreatnewsifyouliveinthenorthbecauseit'slikeatouchofwarmsunshinetogetyouthroughthosechillydays. ClementinesMandarinsPomelosTangerines Otherfruitsandveggiesareavailableduringthewintermonths.Most,however,spantwoseasonsandyou'llfindthosebelow. FromBeetstoWinterSquash,aWinterProduceGuide Year-Round Worldwidedistributionoffreshproducehasmadeagreatvarietyoffruits,vegetables,andherbsavailableyear-round.Mostofthesearestandardfindsatanymarketnomattertheseasonandareconsideredstaplesinthemodernkitchen.Yet,forsomefoods,thereisapeakseasonwhenyou'lldefinitelywanttopickupafewandenjoythemattheirabsolutebest. Arugula,bestinspringandfall Avocados,classicallysummer Beets BelgianEndive,bestinfallandwinter Broccoli,bestinfallandwinter Cabbage,bestinlatefallandwinter Carrots Cauliflower,bestinfallandwinter Celery,bestinfallandwinter CollardGreens Herbs,mostvarieties Lettuce,bestinspring Mint Mushrooms,cultivated Oregano Parsley Rosemary Sage Sorrel Spinach Sprouts Thyme Watercress OverlappingSeasons Plantsdonotsubscribetothestandardcalendarthatpeopleusetodictateseasons.It'sonlynaturalthatsomeproduceoverlapstheseasonsandarenotstrictlyaone-seasonfood. Someproduceisalsogrownindifferentregionsatdifferenttimesoftheyear.Forinstance,cilantroisacool-weatherherbwhoseseasonvariesdependingonwhereit'sgrown.Inwarmclimates,cilantropeaksfromfallthroughspring,whiletheseasonisspringandsummerincoolerareas. LateSpringThroughEarlySummer Whilesomeproducewillcomeintoseasonearlyinspring,otherfoodsbegintopeaklaterintheseason.Theseareoftenavailablethroughearlysummer,makingthisaprimetimetopickupsomefreshgoodies. Apricots Cherries Cilantro,incoolareas NewPotatoes ValenciaOranges PeasandPeaPods Radicchio Rhubarb SpringOnions Strawberries SweetOnions SpringThroughFall Afewveggiesareavailablefromspring,throughsummer,andallthewayintofall.Thesecanbecomestaplesformostoftheyearandbeusedinmanyofyourfavoriterecipes. GreenOnions(Scallions)Mushrooms,wildOnions,storedinwinterRadishes LateSummerThroughFall Asthebountyofsummerslowsdown,there'sstillplentyoffreshfoodstoenjoy.Youshouldhavenoproblemsfindingthesefruitsandveggieswellintoautumnandquiteafewcanbestoredformostofthewinter. Apples,coldstorageuntilspring Chard(Swiss,Red,Rainbow) Eggplant Figs Garlicstoredyear-round Grapes GreenBeans Huckleberries Lemongrass Limes Melons Okra SweetPeppers Potatoes,availablefromstorageyear-round Shallots,availablefromstoragethroughwinter ShellingBeans Tomatillos FallThroughSpring Avarietyofplantsactuallythriveincoolertemperatures.Theybegintopeakinfallandareavailablethroughoutthewinter,uptospring.It'snocoincidencethatmanyofthesearefeaturedincomfortingsoupsandstews,whichareenjoyedthroughoutthecoldermonths. BokChoy BroccoliRaab(Rapini) Cilantro,inwarmareas Fennel Kohlrabi Leeks Parsnips Turnips FallandWinter Whetherthey'retropicalplantsgrowninwarmclimatesorthosethatthriveincoldertemperatures,thereisasurprisingarrayoffallandwinterproduceavailable.Whilesomecanbefoundyear-round,theyarebestinthesecoldmonthsandit'stheperfecttimetotakeadvantageofthem. BrusselsSprouts,latefallintowinter ButternutSquash Celeriac/CeleryRoot Chicories DelicataSquash Escarole Horseradish Kale,availableyear-round Persimmons Pomegranates Radishes,daikon,watermelon,otherlargevarieties Rutabagas Salsify SweetPotatoes Sunchokes(JerusalemArtichokes) WinterSquash WinterandEarlySpring Justlikewinterisaprimetimeforsomevarietiesofcitrusfruits,thebestseasonforotherscanextendintoearlyspring.Cardoons,atypeofartichoke,aretheonlyexceptionhereandarebestrightbeforespringartichokesarrive. CardoonsGrapefruitKiwisKumquatsLemonsNavelOranges FeaturedVideo FallFruitsandVegetables CaliforniaSeasonalFruitsandVegetables FreshSpringFruitsandVegetables FallVegetables SeafoodByTheSeason What'sinSeasoninDecember? SummerFruitsandVegetables NorthCarolinaSeasonalFruitsandVegetables WinterFruitsandVegetables NevadaSeasonalFruitsandVegetables Hawaii'sSeasonalFruitsandVegetables SouthernSeasonalFruitsandVegetables OregonProduce:AListofSeasonalFruits&Vegetables SouthCarolinaSeasonalFruitsandVegetables IndianaSeasonalFruitsandVegetables GeorgiaSeasonalFruitsandVegetables