Seasonality of Crops in New Jersey

By: Leslie Gunnett, Advisory Board Member

I recently attended an event hosted by the Cork Biodiversity Hub titled From Plate to Planet: Seasonal Eating Workshop for Climate Impact. This was part of a nationwide series of workshops during EU Green Week. The Cork Biodiversity Hub is a local community group that supports local rewilding planting efforts, and they host bi-weekly talks on various environmental topics to engage with and educate the public. 

This particular event interested me because I used to have a massive garden in my backyard, so eating seasonally was something I was practicing without thinking too much about it. I would freeze extra veggies and eat them throughout the winter rather than buying them out of season, and I would look forward to my autumn squash rather than buy them from Shoprite in the spring. Having moved across the pond over to Ireland, I am now totally uneducated on what grows during what seasons over here, and the seasons are drastically different from New Jersey!

So, I was excited to attend this event. During the two-hour session, I learned a lot more than I expected. We discussed the benefits of seasonal eating on our mental health, like understanding that our bodies require different comforts during colder months versus warmer ones. This resonated with me because I crave soups constantly in winter, but once summer hits I need lemony drinks and brighter, fresher foods. We did group exercises where we wrote about and discussed our relationships with food, with the environment, habits we want to start and end when it comes to eating, and ways we hope to improve our relationships with nature. This was also something I hadn’t reflected on since moving but in doing this exercise I realized that my relationship with nature has changed dramatically. Living in New Jersey, I was always in my back garden. I had wildflowers planted to support pollinators and cultivated a whole ecosystem of native species on my property. Here in Ireland, I am renting and cannot plant anything, so I have resorted to growing a few vegetables in pots and my new relationship with nature involves me walking everywhere and paying attention to the wildflowers along the roads rather than sitting with them in my own space. 

One of the really cool benefits of seasonal eating that hadn’t occurred to me was that it can help support rewilding. A big part of seasonal eating is supporting local farmers, but it also supports their process in natural, seasonal growth. Allowing crops to grow within their natural cycle allows farms to be wilder and more sustainable. Humanity’s requirements for out-of-season foods around the world puts pressure on greenhouses to keep up with demand while using excessive resources. Growing crops outside their natural cycles requires more fertilizers and energy use, which can pollute surrounding air and waterways. By eating more seasonal foods, we are lessening that pressure to clear even more land for agriculture and to utilize excess energy. Out of season produce also requires mass transportation around the world, which emits greenhouse gases that have a negative effect on our already fragile natural systems. 

When I think about rewilding, I immediately think about planting native plants and supporting native species, but there are so many other ways to support this idea. Even something as simple as eating more seasonally can have a positive impact on your local environment…and it tastes better too! Eating seasonally allows wild spaces to remain wild, can lessen the pollution of those areas, and can allow for more spaces to become wild again.

My favorite go-to seasonal produce for summer in NJ: blueberries, peaches, beets, carrots, bell peppers, scallions, tomatoes, basil, Italian eggplant & summer squash

More information on Seasonality of NJ Crops NJGOV: NJ Season Chart_Front_RA

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