The 47 things in the Typed food library at their best in June — cheapest, most local, and grown outdoors rather than under glass or shipped. These are open-ground growing seasons for the northern hemisphere; in the southern hemisphere read this page as December.
New this month
Not in season in May, in season now.
- ApricotApricots are a sweet, low-calorie fruit loaded with vitamin A that helps your eyes, skin, and immune system -- just never eat the seed inside the pit.
- ArtichokeArtichokes are a fiber-packed flower bud that feeds your gut bacteria and gives your liver a gentle nudge to make more bile for digesting fat.
- BeetrootRaw, baked, boiled or canned — the cooking method changes this vegetable more than most.
- Bitter MelonBitter melon is a super low-calorie vegetable packed with vitamin C, and some studies show it can gently help lower blood sugar, but it's not a magic diabetes cure.
- BlackcurrantBlackcurrants are small, tart berries loaded with vitamin C and deep purple plant compounds called anthocyanins that are good for your heart, eyes, and blood vessels.
- BlueberriesA mixture of hundreds of antioxidant compounds no single pill copies.
- BroccoliContains something no supplement quite copies — and it depends how you cook it.
- BroccoliniBroccolini is a friendly veggie hybrid with crunchy stems and a mild taste, and it packs a big dose of vitamin C and vitamin K into every bite.
- CantaloupeCantaloupe is mostly water and natural sugar, but it still packs a real dose of vitamin C and vitamin A into every juicy bite.
- CherryFresh, frozen and canned cherries are the same fruit with very different amounts of added sugar.
- Chinese Broccoli (Gai Lan)Chinese broccoli looks like a leafy stem vegetable, but it packs a serious punch of vitamins A, C, and K into very few calories.
- CurrantFresh currants are a berry. Dried currants are tiny grapes. They are different plants that happen to share a name.
- GooseberryThis tangy little berry packs a real vitamin C punch — and it's not the same fruit as the "Indian gooseberry" people sometimes confuse it with.
- Green BeansGreen beans are a crunchy veggie that gives you fiber, vitamin C, and a bone-friendly vitamin called K — just make sure they're cooked, not raw.
- Honeydew MelonHoneydew is basically nature's flavored water — light, hydrating, and still packed with real vitamin C and potassium.
- LycheeLychee is a sweet, juicy fruit packed with vitamin C — but eating a big bowl of them with an empty stomach is a real risk for young, malnourished kids.
- MelonAll melons are mostly water. The colour of the flesh tells you what else is in there.
- NectarineThe peach-plum-cross story about nectarines isn't true — it's just a peach without the fuzz.
- PeachA solid source of vitamins A and C together, both tied to skin health.
- RaspberriesUnusually high in fibre for a fruit, and worth separating from the “raspberry ketone” pill sold under its name.
- RedcurrantRedcurrants are a sour, ruby-red berry packed with vitamin C — and they're not the same as the dried "currants" you find in trail mix or muffins.
- Silverbeet (Swiss Chard)A leafy green packed with vitamin A, plus iron and folate.
- Sweet CherriesThe sleep research used tart cherry juice, not these. Worth knowing before you buy a punnet.
- Swiss ChardOne cup of cooked Swiss chard packs a huge dose of vitamin K — great for most people, but something to watch closely if you take blood thinners like warfarin.
- Tart CherriesOne of the few foods that naturally contains measurable melatonin.
- TomatoesOne of the few foods where cooking increases what you get from it.
- WatermelonThe original natural source of citrulline — the same compound in the supplements.
- ZucchiniMild and mostly water, but a real source of potassium and gut-friendly fibre.
Last month for these
Gone by July.
Everything in season in June
- ApricotApricots are a sweet, low-calorie fruit loaded with vitamin A that helps your eyes, skin, and immune system -- just never eat the seed inside the pit.
- ArtichokeArtichokes are a fiber-packed flower bud that feeds your gut bacteria and gives your liver a gentle nudge to make more bile for digesting fat.
- AsparagusA prebiotic fibre source, famous for a harmless and genetically variable side effect.
- BananaA practical potassium source — tablets are capped far lower for safety.
- BeetrootRaw, baked, boiled or canned — the cooking method changes this vegetable more than most.
- Bitter MelonBitter melon is a super low-calorie vegetable packed with vitamin C, and some studies show it can gently help lower blood sugar, but it's not a magic diabetes cure.
- BlackcurrantBlackcurrants are small, tart berries loaded with vitamin C and deep purple plant compounds called anthocyanins that are good for your heart, eyes, and blood vessels.
- BlueberriesA mixture of hundreds of antioxidant compounds no single pill copies.
- BroccoliContains something no supplement quite copies — and it depends how you cook it.
- BroccoliniBroccolini is a friendly veggie hybrid with crunchy stems and a mild taste, and it packs a big dose of vitamin C and vitamin K into every bite.
- CantaloupeCantaloupe is mostly water and natural sugar, but it still packs a real dose of vitamin C and vitamin A into every juicy bite.
- CarrotsCooking actually makes its signature nutrient easier to absorb.
- CherryFresh, frozen and canned cherries are the same fruit with very different amounts of added sugar.
- Chinese Broccoli (Gai Lan)Chinese broccoli looks like a leafy stem vegetable, but it packs a serious punch of vitamins A, C, and K into very few calories.
- CucumberMostly water by weight — which is exactly the point of it.
- CurrantFresh currants are a berry. Dried currants are tiny grapes. They are different plants that happen to share a name.
- Daikon RadishDaikon is a crunchy, watery radish that's low in calories but surprisingly high in vitamin C, and its natural enzymes may give your stomach a small hand with starchy food.
- GooseberryThis tangy little berry packs a real vitamin C punch — and it's not the same fruit as the "Indian gooseberry" people sometimes confuse it with.
- Green BeansGreen beans are a crunchy veggie that gives you fiber, vitamin C, and a bone-friendly vitamin called K — just make sure they're cooked, not raw.
- Honeydew MelonHoneydew is basically nature's flavored water — light, hydrating, and still packed with real vitamin C and potassium.
- Iceberg LettuceIceberg lettuce isn't "just crunchy water" - it's mostly water, but that water comes packaged with real vitamin K.
- LettuceNearly all water — but the darker the leaf, the more it actually gives you.
- LycheeLychee is a sweet, juicy fruit packed with vitamin C — but eating a big bowl of them with an empty stomach is a real risk for young, malnourished kids.
- MangoOne of the few fruits genuinely rich in both vitamin C and vitamin A.
- MelonAll melons are mostly water. The colour of the flesh tells you what else is in there.
- NectarineThe peach-plum-cross story about nectarines isn't true — it's just a peach without the fuzz.
- PapayaContains a digestive enzyme, plus one of the highest vitamin C counts of any fruit.
- PeachA solid source of vitamins A and C together, both tied to skin health.
- PineappleContains bromelain — the same enzyme sold as a digestive supplement.
- RadishRadishes are mostly water and crunch, but that spicy bite is doing real work in your body.
- RaspberriesUnusually high in fibre for a fruit, and worth separating from the “raspberry ketone” pill sold under its name.
- RedcurrantRedcurrants are a sour, ruby-red berry packed with vitamin C — and they're not the same as the dried "currants" you find in trail mix or muffins.
- RhubarbA very low-calorie, high-fiber stalk vegetable with a distinctly tart bite.
- RocketRocket is in the mustard family, not the lettuce family, and that is where the peppery taste comes from.
- Romaine LettuceRomaine is mostly water and crunch, but it packs a real dose of vitamin K and vitamin A into very few calories.
- Silverbeet (Swiss Chard)A leafy green packed with vitamin A, plus iron and folate.
- Snap PeasA handful of snap peas can cover your whole day's vitamin C, pod and all.
- Snow PeasSnow peas are the crunchy whole pod you eat, pea and all -- low calorie, high in vitamin C, and good for digestion.
- SpinachThe Popeye story about spinach and iron is not quite true.
- StrawberriesA genuinely strong vitamin C source people do not associate with berries.
- Sweet CherriesThe sleep research used tart cherry juice, not these. Worth knowing before you buy a punnet.
- Swiss ChardOne cup of cooked Swiss chard packs a huge dose of vitamin K — great for most people, but something to watch closely if you take blood thinners like warfarin.
- Tart CherriesOne of the few foods that naturally contains measurable melatonin.
- TomatoesOne of the few foods where cooking increases what you get from it.
- WatercressWatercress is a peppery little green that punches way above its weight -- basically a multivitamin with crunch.
- WatermelonThe original natural source of citrulline — the same compound in the supplements.
- ZucchiniMild and mostly water, but a real source of potassium and gut-friendly fibre.
A season says when something is at its best, not what is on the shelf. Almost all of this is available all year through glasshouses, controlled-atmosphere storage and imports — the season is the thing the price tag hides.
Other months