When should I prune an apple tree?

Any dry, frost-free day between leaf fall and bud burst. January is ideal in Ireland and Britain: the wood is bare and you can see the shape you are cutting towards.

Is anything worth foraging in January?

Yes — winter chanterelle and velvet shank in northern woodland, and seaweed, which is at its best in cold clean winter water.

What's in season in January in the southern hemisphere?

High summer produce: peaches, nectarines, cherries, tomatoes, courgettes and the first plums.

Season guide

What's in season in January, around the world

January. Deep dormancy and pruning in the north; high summer, stone fruit and tomatoes in the south.

January at a glance

Climate band	Ripe now	Being foraged	Going in the ground
Northern temperate40–60°N	Stored apples, kale, leeks, forced rhubarb	Winter chanterelle, velvet shank, seaweed	Broad beans under cover, bare-root trees
Mediterranean & warm temperate30–40°N/S	Citrus, olives pressed, chard	Wild fennel, three-cornered leek	Onions, peas, early salads
Southern temperate30–50°S	Peaches, cherries, tomatoes, courgettes	Blackberries in Chile and Argentina	Successional beans and salads
Tropical & subtropical0–25°N/S	Mango building, papaya, jackfruit	Wild honey, palm fruits	Rice, cassava

In the north

Nothing is growing and that is the point. January is the month of the pruning knife: apples and pears while the wood is bare and the shape of the tree is legible, stone fruit left well alone until summer to keep silver leaf out.

Foraging is thin but not empty — winter chanterelle under conifers, velvet shank on dead elm, and the best month of the year for seaweed on the Atlantic coasts, when the water is cold and clean.

In the ground: bare-root fruit trees, which go in cheaper and establish better than anything sold in a pot. Broad beans under cloches, garlic if you missed November.

What's in season in Ireland in January

In the south

High summer. Stone fruit is at its peak across Mendoza, the Rio Grande do Sul and Central Otago — peaches, nectarines, apricots, the first plums — and tomatoes are coming in faster than anyone can eat them.

This is preserving month in the southern temperate band: passata, bottled peaches, chutney. In the tropics the mango season is building towards its Indian peak and jackfruit is heavy on the tree.

Marked days

Wassail
England and Ireland, 17 January
Old Twelfth Night. Cider is poured at the roots of an apple tree, noise is made to wake it, and toast is left in the branches for the robins.
Pongal
Tamil Nadu, mid-January
Four days of harvest thanksgiving. New rice is boiled with jaggery until it deliberately spills over the pot — the overflow is the blessing.
Makar Sankranti
Across India
Sesame and jaggery eaten to mark the sun's turn north.
Tu BiShvat
Jewish calendar, January or February
The new year of the trees, kept with a seder of fruits and nuts.

From the community

No entries for January yet — yours would be the first.

Tell us what's ripe where you are, and what your place does with it.

Find somewhere near you

2 places on the map are in season in January.

Yarra Valley Berry & Stone Fruit
Berries & stone fruit · Yarra Glen, Victoria, Australia
Hawke's Bay Stone Fruit Trail
Peaches & nectarines · Hastings, Hawke's Bay, New Zealand

Open the map

This month in the Harvest Club

January's Gathering is Wassail — pruning, planning, and an ancient orchard blessing.

Join the club →

Questions

When should I prune an apple tree?: Any dry, frost-free day between leaf fall and bud burst. January is ideal in Ireland and Britain: the wood is bare and you can see the shape you are cutting towards.
Is anything worth foraging in January?: Yes — winter chanterelle and velvet shank in northern woodland, and seaweed, which is at its best in cold clean winter water.
What's in season in January in the southern hemisphere?: High summer produce: peaches, nectarines, cherries, tomatoes, courgettes and the first plums.