The Twelve Fruits of the Tu B'shvat Seder

Because Tu B’Shvat falls on the 15th day of the Hebrew month Shvat, some people try to eat 15 kinds of fruit, all with symbolic meaning for the day. Here are our suggestions!

Wheat

A nourishing grain, wheat can be eaten in the form of bread or wheat-snacks during the Tu B’shvat seder, and is one of two of the seven species that are not considered a fruit.

Olives

The olive tree remains one of Israel’s oldest native trees. It can grow even in poor conditions, and never loses its leaves!

A large and old olive tree in an olive orchard

Dates

Dates are native to Israel. Their honey is the sweet silan you find in every Israeli supermarket. Delicious in yogurt, and especially in muesli.

Grapes

Consumed in the form of wine during the seder, grapes have been grown in Israel for wine for millennia.

Figs

One of the oldest fruits in the land of Israel, the fig is believed by some people to be the tree of “national Israel”

Pomegranates

The pomegranate grows throughout Israel and is most popularly eaten on Rosh Hashana, the Hebrew New Year.

Etrogim, Hebrew for “citrons.”

This fruit is used on Sukkot, another agricultural holiday in the Hebrew calendar celebrating the harvest, the Etrog symbolizes the holiday marking the end of the agricultural year in the Land of Israel.

4 etrogs laying on a pile of palm branches

Sabra

This cactus fruit is also a name for a born native Israeli. Its hard prickly shell protects its sweet fruit interior.

Citrus

Still one of Israel’s largest agricultural exports, citrus fruit in Israel has been popular since the early 1920s.

Almonds

Considered one of the “choicest” fruits of the land of Israel. Almond trees need a lot of water to bear fruit and therefore are considered a luxury.

Carobs

Carob trees take many years to grow (around 70). We eat carob on Tu B’shvat to symbolize the longevity and the belief that our descendants will benefit from the fruit of our labor.