A Year of Stocking Up: September

I thought I'd like to spend a year posting what fruits and vegetables are in season in each month of the year.  I'd also like to share a few ideas of what you might do with those fruits and vegetables.  I'm serious about my desire to begin to put a little something away each month, either by my own hand or by purchasing items that are ready prepared for the season.  

I'd like to take it a step further and also share a list of items that are typically on sale in each month as well as days that are prime shopping days in a month.  

Labor Day was a wonderful sales holiday for me.  I purchased a new pair of shoes, a leather purse for fall/winter, replaced make-up items that went on sale at the same time.  This is one way I'm getting more for my money.    All of these items were on sale and the holiday added further savings as well as free shipping to the shoes and purse.  

September is a great month for produce.  It's nearly as prolific as in July and August.  And it is a nice bridge between the summer fruits and the autumn ones.  

Lists may vary according to the region you live in. I urge you to look online for lists that are geared to your area.  

General lists are never as comprehensive as regional ones will be.  For instance, I viewed loads of lists but not one of them included peanuts.  In Georgia, peanuts are harvested from late September through November.  I saw green peanuts in the supermarket this past week.  The big peanut farm about 80 miles southeast of my area sets up booths to sell boiled peanuts in gas station parking lots all over middle Georgia and they've been selling their product now for about a month.  But not one list says anything about peanuts.  I know they aren't a big thing everywhere, but most folks do eat peanuts in some form. Some people like the parched or roasted.  

And we start to see the pecans being harvested this month.  So definitely find a great state by state list.

Another example is corn.  Several of the lists I read through included corn.  Our corn season ends before peach season finishes here, and peach season in Georgia is usually finished before mid-August.  So yes, if you really want to eat seasonally, then look for a list of seasonal produce that is exclusive to your state.  You can quickly find produce based on the state you live in and then narrow it further by county/borough for pick your own sites. 

Produce:

Apples.  I don't make a lot of apple pie, but I like to make up a couple and keep in the freezer as a ready to bake item each fall.  Remember the cores make wonderful apple vinegar and the peels can be used to make jelly.  

Beets

Blackberries (long past the season for us here in Georgia)

Corn (also past for us)

Eggplant

Grapes (Moon drops and such varieties of black grapes are coming in the market and are best priced just now.  Local for us it's muscadines and scuppernongs which make lovely jelly and can be foraged in the woods around our area as well as purchased in the grocery).

Okra

Peppers.  I've frozen halves of green bell peppers to use for stuffed peppers and diced pieces which I frequently use when cooking.  I believe there are hot peppers in this one category as well.  I have halved, seeded jalapeno and whole serrano peppers in my freezer for use in cooking.   I will stock a few more green peppers if I find them on sale.

Persimmons

Pears.  Mama used to make a pickled pear relish that was quite nice to serve with pork and on hot dogs.  Granny favored pear preserves.  Personally, I like a nice gingery pear butter as a spread for toast and biscuits.  Three Rivers Homestead puts up pear sauce, same as applesauce.

Pecans.  Pecans can be shelled and frozen or left in shell for quite a few months.  I find time spent cracking pecans and hulling them out is a nice way to occupy a quiet hour in winter.

Peanuts (usually later in September).  You can boil and can or simply freeze green peanuts still in the shell to process later.  Personally, I just buy a bag of boiled nuts when I see the vendors out.  I prefer them as a seasonal snack reserved for fall.  You can also roast and grind for homemade all natural peanut butter.

Pomegranates

Potatoes (not locally produced but we stumble on a few really well priced bags this time of year.  My best price thus far was 20c per pound, whereas we typically pay around 80c/pound).

Pumpkins

Radishes

Raspberries

Beans (second crops for our area)

Summer Squash (also a second crop)

Sweet Potatoes

Tomatillos

Tomatoes

I also found a produce list of available citrus fruits by month.  Since citrus grows year-round there is some form of it available, but the in-season citrus is usually the best priced...though I must comment that I seldom see great prices on lemons or limes.  

In September look for Valencia oranges, Lemons, Limes, Naval oranges and mandarins.  I've seen some really excellent prices on mandarins this month, $1 a pound.

Food related items typically on sale in September: Peanut butter, luncheon meats, individually packed snack items, frozen breakfast items, zippered plastic bags, plastic containers, lunchboxes.  This holds true in September in my area, since the corporate offices set those sales cycles.  It's all geared for the back to school moms.

In some states, case lot sales are a big thing in September.  Watch for sales and great prices on canned items.  Admittedly I've not spied any in my markets at present but it's getting time for pumpkin and cranberries to start coming to market and you may find a good buy on older cans of those items that are well within their best by dates.

And for a non-traditional food provider, look at Amazon sales.  A lot of the sales newsletters I get tend to focus on snack foods from Amazon, rather than pantry supplies.  The snacks often are far better priced than a grocery store, but don't let those newsletters lead you just to the snack foods and cereals you can buy.  Click on Groceries and Foods on the left-hand drop-down bar.  Then at the top of the grocery page click on Deals.  

25 Madagascar vanilla beans were just $23 this past week.  There were lots of deals on coffees.  I saw a terrific deal on individual applesauce cups, with no added sugar, 72 pack case for $17...If I had kids at home, I'd buy that!  There were a lot of individually packages snacks, baby foods, teas, and spices and seasonings.  It's well worth going to take a look.

Other Purchases to look for this month:

Summer items often go on sale in August and September as they're clearing out the summer stock to make room for fall, Halloween and Christmas items.  Now is a great time to purchase those wish list items you've been wanting all summer long like:

Pools and Pool toys.  Also water guns, water balloons, slip and slides, etc. I used to buy at this time of year and put away for the next summer. 

Patio furniture

Grills

Summer Gardening gear.  Sam told me this week he'd been able to purchase raised garden beds for less than half price at one of the stores.

Summer Clothing.  Heavily clearance priced at this time of year.  Because we live in a mild climate, I used to do most of my children's back to school shopping from clearance racks.  T-shirts and jeans really aren't seasonal items in the deep South. 

Watch for Labor Day sales on many items including fall bedding plants, mulch, shoes, clothing, makeup, etc.

Mattresses and bed linens.  I didn't know this! I thought January was the only white sale month. We just had another sheet wear out.  I have plenty of replacements in my cedar trunk, but I'll want to look for a replacement for the sheet I'll be putting into rotation this week.

Bicycles.  If you wanted to give the kids bikes this Christmas or plan to take up biking as a family hobby, now's the time to purchase them.

Storage and Organizational tool supplies.  I was a little surprised at how many sales I've seen on these items.  Usually, I see these sales in January but apparently, September is the second largest organizational month of the year.

Baby Items and Car seats. The list I was viewing about this item was not specific on which baby items were likely being sold but seemed to indicate big pieces, so I'm thinking they meant beds, highchairs, strollers, etc.  Also, baby safety items.  

 I noted recently that Target is about to launch their big sales for baby carrier, car seats and booster seats.  They take trade-ins of the expired and damaged car seats, so parents don't have to dispose of the old ones.  

School Supplies. (We saw these sales more in July and August in my area since school started at the end of July.  This too is a regional thing...so make note of what you see on sale and in which month in your area/state.)

 Preparedness Items:

Fall's started, kids are back to school and that means a new spate of allergies, colds and flu.  Check your medicine cupboards and make your list of necessities to fill the gaps.  I need to buy Bromelain, (Pineapple juice is a good source of Vitamin C and bromelain), allergy medications, and anti-nausea, upset stomach items.  I've just restocked tissues and cold medications except for the Bromelain tablets last month.

I hope you find this sort of posting each month helpful.  I'm planning to do one for each month right through next August so we can access it here on the site.  

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