Each year I try to learn a bit more about eating in season and how it can be done. At first (about three years ago) I just looked at what was in season all around the world and picked up it up at the grocery store knowing it would have the highest nutrients it could at those times. Then next year I looked into what was in season locally and attempted to stay within those bounds so that the food I’d be eating would travel shorter distances and therefore be in better condition and have a higher nutrient content. Last year I attempted to grow what I could for each season with the space I had. It was very eye opening! This year I’m going to take what I learned from last year and really apply it to my gardening and food choices.
Spring is around the corner and next month marks the start of sprouting. I will be documenting this very heavily with photos and notes so that I can better learn from what I’m doing. Here’s a run down of local, in season, foods for each time of year. If you live somewhere outside the midwest I really encourage you to find out what is in season in your area and challenge you to try and stay within those bounds.
Here in Kansas City the season starts fairly early since many greens can both sprout and grow comfortably in very cold weather even enduring frosts.
I’ll go by season not month since so many different things cross each month.
Spring-lettuce, spinach, kale, peas, swiss chard, arugala, garlic, parsnips, radishes, rhubarb, cherries, and various herbs.
Summer- tomatoes, peppers, broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, onions, leeks, melons, cucumbers, summer squashes, strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, blackberries, potatoes, sweet potatoes, okra, eggplants, corn, radishes, beets, rhubarb, zucchini, peaches, plums, green beans, turnips, collard greens and many different herbs.
Fall- beets, carrots, leeks, parsnips, winter squash, kale, collard greens, swiss chard, lettuce, spinach, turnips, apples, pears, radishes, and various herbs.
Winter- beets, carrots, leeks, parsnips, kale, collard greens, and turnips.
With a simple cold house you can grow much more in the winter. Right now in my garden my turnips are still beautiful! However, it’s nearly impossible to live off of only in-season foods unless you have a very clean diet and a very good facility. So, you have to learn to increase crops so that you can store them at their peak of nutritional value. This past year I did my best to do this by freezing berries, and greens, dehydrating tomatoes, peppers, and summer squash and canning anything I could.
So far I still am making green smoothies from frozen kale and collard greens and freshly frozen berries picked in season. I’m eating pickles from my cucumber patch, and apples from the orchard. I am utilizing dried peppers which I hung in my garage for many things from chili paste, pepper flakes and salsas. It’s great! I can see my areas for improvement next year though and they are very large. Here is a list of my goals for growing, storing and eating my produce.
1. eat as much of the produce as possible during the actual harvest season.
2. make time to create storage by prioritizing time.
3. plant a larger variety of produce.
4. learn new ways to store produce.
5. get more of the in-season local produce from farmers during times when my own garden has minimal output.
We’ll see how it goes! I’m ridiculously excited about this years gardening because of how much I learned last year.
Question: do you have a garden?
I will be following you on this! I grow my own food, but I know I should be doing more. I don’t know a ton about it… so I’m looking forward to learning more about it.
hmm…does freezing and thawing reduce the nutritional value like cooking does?
I don’t have a garden . . . but maybe this is the year. We spend so much on things like peppers since we eat them in upto 6 meals a week, I’d love to be able to grow my own.
YES! this past year was my first garden. I am super excited about gardening again this year.
great post! this is something that I am always thinking about…eating in season, storing what I can, growing as much as I can…
We have a deck garden in the summer, and I miss it! Love how you outlined the produce by season!
yes… I’m all about eating seasonal that’s why I like markets in china because they don’t carry what’s in season!!
I’d love to have a garden someday!
I have learned so much about eating seasonally and locally in the past year. While I have made lots of progress, there’s still room for improvement! I also live in NYC which makes it hard(er) to maintain a “garden”. That and I do NOT have a green thumb. Still, I have great access to farmer’s markets so I try to stick to their inventory when possible!
I would looooove to have a garden but unfortunately we have no yard
. Once I move out of the city it’ll be a top priority!
I wish I had a garden, but I have a death thumb. All plants die on me. I used to have a basil plant in a pot, and that actually flourished for awhile, but then someone stole it when I left it outside to soak in the rain. Grrr…
I have heard that freezing can zap some nutrients, but it certainly maintains flavor. I view it like a time capsule. When I open up frozen peppers or berries in the winter, I am immediately reminded of how awesome the summer was.
I do not have a garden, but I really wish that I did. We just dont have the space for one since its my mom and me in our suite. I love all of your tips and suggestions on eating locally. I should really work on that more too.
In response to Morgon who likes peppers. I really encourage you to try growing them. They are so easy and satisfying. Plus, conventional ones are sprayed so much and organic ones are so expensive. I grow lots of colored sweet bell peppers and hot peppers. They need to be watered periodically to have thick flesh. I lay down a lot of hay so that the ground will hold moisture. They do better when summers are not so hot. We have all we want from mid-summer to frost, then I chop all those beautiful colored ones and mix them together and freeze them in little bags that I stuff in gallon freezer bags. Then they are ready all winter for pizza or to saute with scrambled eggs or whatever.