Seasonal Eating - The Guide to the Seasons

When we talk about seasonal eating, we are talking about a few things that benefit from the idea of “Eating seasonally…”

Firstly, eating seasonally can be provoked by having your own garden, certain things will only grow in certain climate seasons of the year so you only have exposure to those foods for a short time. Allowing more diversity in your eating regime.

Seasonal Eating - Flora Diversity

With diversity and seasonal eating allows the feast and famine notion to apply to our microbiome. Our ancestors laid the foundation of our microbial populations based on the hunter-gatherer stance that we have come to learn about them. To see the diversity of their microbiomes, change over the course of the seasons gave us a fair indication of the impact of not having certain foods for periods of time helping with the maintenance of the internal populations. (Research articles for reading at the bottom).

Nutrient Density and Locality of Grown Goods

Another important factor to consider with seasonal eating is the overall nutrient density of the food from farm/garden – how was it processed, stored, grown, soils, etc. These are things you can have control over if you choose to, pop into your local farmer's Markets if you want a better indication of what’s in season and more organically grown often. Plus, supporting smaller businesses like your local farmers benefits both of you in the long run!

So without further a-due Here is a composed list of seasonal Foods to use as a guide depending on which hemisphere you are in reading this:

Summer

Apricots	Apples
Artichokes	Basil
Bell Peppers	Blueberries
Cabbage	Carrots
Celery	Cherries
Chilli	Cilantro/ Corriander
Corn	Cucumbers
Currants	Eggplant
Figs	Garlic
Green Beans	Soy
Marjoram	Melons
Nectarines	Okra
Peaches	Plums
Raspberries	Rhubarb
Strawberries	Swiss Chard
Summer Squash	Tomatoes
Tomatillos	Thyme
Watermelon	Zucchini
Wild berries	Lima and Fava Beans

 

Autumn /Fall

Apples	Beets
Bell peppers	Brussel Sprouts
Carrots	Celery
Cranberries	Cucumbers
Currants	Dates
Eggplant	Garlic
Gourds	Kiwi Fruit
Leeks	Melons
Onions	Pears
Peas	Pecans
Pistachios	Plums
Pomegranates	Potatoes
Pumpkin	Quince
Summer Squash	Sweet Potato
Thyme	Tomatoes
Turnips	Walnuts
Watermelon	Zucchini
Winter Squash	Soy
Lima beans	Fava Beans

 

Winter

Apples	Arugula
Asian Pears	Blood Orange
Brussel Sprouts	Cabbage
Carrots	Celery
Clementines	Collards
Fennel	Guava
Kale	Kumquats
Mustard Greens	Olives
Parsnips	Persimmon
Pomelos (Citrus)	Potatoes
Pumpkins	Oranges
Radish	Sage
Star Fruit	Swiss Chard
Tangerines	Turnips
Winter Squash	Lettuce

 

Spring

Asparagus	Arugula
Celery	Chives
Cilantro/Corriander	Dill
Fava Beans	field beans
Garlic	Green Beans
Lettuce	Prickly pear
Kale	Mushrooms
Parsley	Peas/ shoots
Pineapple	radishes
Rhubarb	Turnips
Sprouts	Strawberries
Swiss Chard	Watercress

 

All Year Rounders

Broccoli	Coconut
Limes	Onions
Avocado	Bokchoy
Cauliflower	Lemons
Mushrooms	Spinach

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References:

1. 2017 Aug 25;357(6353):802-806. doi: 10.1126/science.aan4834. Seasonal cycling in the gut microbiome of the Hadza hunter-gatherers of Tanzania. Smits SA1, Leach J2,3, Sonnenburg ED1, Gonzalez CG4, Lichtman JS4, Reid G5, Knight R6, Manjurano A7, Changalucha J7, Elias JE4, Dominguez-Bello MG8, Sonnenburg JL1.
2. Annu Rev Genet. 2017 Nov 27;51:413-433. doi: 10.1146/annurev-genet-110711-155532. Epub 2017 Sep 20. The Relationship Between the Human Genome and Microbiome Comes into View. Goodrich JK1,2, Davenport ER2, Clark AG2, Ley RE1,2.
3. Science. 2012 Jun 8;336(6086):1255-62. doi: 10.1126/science.1224203. Epub 2012 Jun 6. The application of ecological theory toward an understanding of the human microbiome. Costello EK1, Stagaman K, Dethlefsen L, Bohannan BJ, Relman DA.
4. Mackie RI, Sghir A, Gaskins HR. Developmental microbial ecology of the neonatal gastrointestinal tract. Am J Clin Nutr. 1999 May;69:1035S. 
5. Savage DC. Microbial ecology of the gastrointestinal tract. Annu Rev Microbiol. 1977;31:107.