Tu B’Shevat heralds the arrival of spring in the Land of Israel when almond blossoms start to open and sap in the trees begins to rise.  The purpose of the holiday is to calculate the age of trees for tithing, or giving fruit offerings. The Torah teaches that a tree’s fruit may not be eaten during the first three years of the tree’s life. In the fourth year the fruit can be brought as an offering to God and only in the fifth year can it be consumed.

On Tu B’shevat we celebrate our connection to Israel by eating from shivat haminim, the seven species mentioned in the book of Deuteronomy as growing in abundance in the Land of Israel. The seven species are: wheat, barley, grapes, figs, pomegranates, olives, and dates.