June

June is one of the most exciting months in the fruit and vegetable calendar. English Asparagus is one of the highlights, even though its season officially ends on the 21st of the month. The smaller grades especially taste wonderful and look so inviting on the plate. In a good year, prices can become extremely low and class two spears can be bought for well under £1.50 per lb.

Soft fruit will try hard to steal the limelight. Cherries from France, Spain, Italy, Greece and Turkey reach their best in the first half of the month and, later, scruffy, but cheap English Cherries make their debut. USA White Cherries are a sensationally sweet must! But supplies vary considerably from year to year.

English Strawberries are synonymous with June.

Redcurrants, Whitecurrants, Tayberries, Blackberries, Raspberries, Loganberries and Blueberries will all be available, and fairly cheap, by mid-month, so dig out all those summer pudding recipes.

Grapes can be a problem but, in recent years, supplies of Californian have started early and have been followed shortly by the Israeli and Cypriot crops. Cape Satsumas should improve as the month progresses, shrugging off their green patches. Other Citrus fruit from our hemisphere will end, allowing in supplies from South Africa and South America.The same applies to Apples, but with the addition of high quality New Zealand fruit , such as Sturmer Pippins and Braeburns.

Peaches, Nectarines and Apricots will become very cheap and will taste wonderful too.

New season Plums will arrive from Spain and Israel. The first shipments are never cheap.

English Gooseberries — the perfect choice for cheap and tasty desserts — should be available from mid-month.

Nisberries are brown fruits about the size and shape of a small mango, with sticky flesh that's as sweet as a date. They should be around in June and are well worth experimenting with.

Gobstopper-ish Gineps proved a great They are especially good for creating sweet pastries.

Lychees will be out, Rambutans in!

Asparagus is not the only excitement in the vegetable world.

English Peas will hit the market and represent great value for money.

Home produced Broad Beans are a must too.

Jersey Silk Beans are a pale, tender and reasonably affordable treat.

Large Potato prices always shoot up in early June due to dwindling stocks. Last year, shortages were more acute than usual and prices went sky-high. We’re not expecting such a problem this year, but some rises are inevitable.

New Crop Large Potatoes often don’t appear until the last week of the month. New Mids will be plentiful, though, and usually represent great value for money.

For colourful vegetables you can’t beat Variegated Green and Purple Calaloo; a wonderful alternative to cabbage or spinach.

Japanese Coloured Kale is a member of the cabbage family and is like a vegetable version of lollo rosso, but more brightly coloured in silver-green and purple or creamy white.

English Swede should be left off June menus as the crop becomes unacceptably bad. The new season Spanish crop is viewed by most as too expensive.

French Turnips, though, are a more than adequate alternative.

Parsnips can become hard to find, too; although the Spaniards are rumoured to be growing more for export this year.

Shallots can be difficult to find until the new season bulbs reach us late in the month.

Wet Garlic is highly recommendable, and Italian White Onions have a sweet, hot, fresh taste, ideal for salads and cooking.

Great news for Pepper lovers! All colours should fall in price as the month progresses, especially as the English season gets underway.

Tomatoes are cheap, but really tasty ones are hard to find even amongst the mountains of French, Dutch and English fruit available. You may have more luck with Italian Plum and Vine Tomatoes. If your budget allows, it’s worth paying twice the price for tomatoes with real flavour.

English Roquette and Pousses are good and cheap in June.

Watercress and Spring Onions will be at their best too.

Radiccio and even Chicory may be difficult.

Last June a newcomer appeared in Spitalfields. Frillice.... a frilly, surprisingly flavoursome, iceberg-textured lettuce. We hope to see more this year.

Webbs Wonders will undoubtedly live up to their name — providing better taste and value than Iceberg by far.

Herbs and Flowers should all be plentiful, and you'll be able to choose from about 30 varieties. Nasturtium Flowers are a great favourite of mine, and they really get growing next month. June’s Elderflower supplies are very much at the mercy of the weather. If it gets too hot, they’ll be finished in the first week. Last year they lasted for most of the month.

Mousserons dominate the Wild Mushroom scene, with tight new Ceps becoming more plentiful. Scottish Giroles show themselves too.

For something really special, why not try Water Asparagus? The spears look like unripe ears of wheat, have a nutty taste and super-tender texture. They should be available through most of the month. Great cooked or raw.

Lastly, for those fish dishes, Samphire becomes super value in June. The quality is guaranteed to be superb and the price becomes truly reasonable.