Eggplant how does it grow

Eggplants, like tomatoes and peppers, are actually tropical perennials plants in the wild. Gardeners in temperate areas tend to grow them as annuals, since they do not tolerate cold temperatures. I would only recommend disposing of the plant if it looks diseased or heavily impacted by pests.

My wife is a Filipina and I plant the long slender eggplant and the way she prepares it is beyond description. Traditionally I have problems finding the plants to set out and to find the seeds to get started early is always a challenge.

This year I didn't cage them which was a mistake as the story goes, they will fall over. But they produce beautifully. They are one of my garden staples and thank you for the story with the good tips. The bug in the size of a flea. It is black and can fly. They have peppered my eggplant leaves with holes. What are they and how can I control them? Those are the calling cards of flea beetles! See our pest page for more info on them: Flea Beetles.

Hi I bought little fingers verity from winco and transplanted in my veggie bed and it gets sun morning to till 11am and from 3pm to till sun set.

It has so many blooms but not a single egg plant I got. We have bees to pollinate. I am from Portland OR. Plz help what can I do to get egg plants. They are approx. Is it usual for the Black Beauty to grow slower than any other Eggplant?

Eggplant is doing very well in my place but it is being affected by the Bacteria wilt mostly the Black beaty variety. How can solve this,thanks alot for the training.

The fungi are soilborn. Unfortunately, Bacterial Wilt is very difficult to control. They infect through the roots. When possible, avoid land with a history of Bacterial Wilt. Commercial eggplant varieties with intermediate resistance to wilt are available. Resistant rootstocks are also available.

The best bet is to ensure good drainage. Plant on raised beds for better drainage away from roots. This will help alleviate disease pressure. Use mulching and furrow irrigation to reduce splashing and excess leaf wetness. Use field sanitation techniques such as weed control and removal of debris from previous crops to help reduce disease severity. Rotate to non-host crops in order to lower the population of bacteria in the soil.

Thoroughly disinfect equipment before moving from infested to clean fields. Thank you for your well researched findings of vegetable production has motivated me to conduct much more research on water conservation especially for Uganda which still rely on rain fed Agriculture. Thank you. Both depend on the variety you are growing. They typically take between 2 and 3 months to produce fruit.

I have 2 plants and enjoyed many eggplants from both. The plant itself is still alive and has many flowers but no fruit is coming. Are they done for the season? They are actually a perennial, but most people treat them as annuals because they are not frost tolerant. I have 2 large Asian eggplants Solanum ferox or terong asam in Indonesian in my office that stand about 2 feet tall and are over a year old.

Okay — so that might be a little dramatic. But with some perseverance, they can be controlled with organic methods or dealt with by chemical pesticide. Although many types of flea beetles can munch on your crops, the eggplant flea beetle Epitrix fuscula is a particularly voracious eater of S.

Learn more about combating flea beetles with our guide. Cutworms , which are moth larvae, do their damage at night, which is pretty obvious come morning. Spider mites can barely even be seen and hide on the undersides of leaves. Fortunately, healthy plants can handle a few unwanted critters. If action must be taken, consider using diatomaceous earth or insecticidal soaps.

Powdery mildew and verticillium wilt have been known to affect eggplant and are difficult to control once present. Verticillium wilt in particular is caused by soil-borne fungi that can survive for more than ten years, even without a host present. Once infected, remove plants immediately. Avoid growing host plants, which include other members of the nightshade family like tomatoes and peppers, in the impacted area for at least three years. Rotating crops year to year, removing diseased vegetation, watering smart, and growing resistant varieties if available will all help to prevent issues with pests and disease.

The timing of your harvest will depend on the particular variety of eggplant you are growing. Typically, fruits are at their most tasty when harvested before they reach maturity. When they are ready, the skin will have a glossy appearance, the flesh will be cream colored, and the seeds will be very small or not developed. Harvesting when they are about half the expected mature size described on the seed packet will also encourage the plant to put its energy into producing more fruit.

If you wait too long to harvest, the skin may become dull and tough, and there may be an abundance of seeds. The plants often have thorns on or around the stems and calyx, so it is advisable to wear a pair of gardening gloves as you are picking. Use a clean pair of scissors or a sharp knife to cut through the stem one or two inches above the fruit. Bring your eggplant inside and — without washing it first — wrap it in a paper bag and place it in a dry, temperature-controlled area of your home.

Wrap the fruit in paper towels and place it in the crisper drawer of your fridge, where it should last for about five to seven days. You can also chop up the fruit into your desired size, peel it if desired, and blanch it by boiling for four minutes. Let the eggplant cool in an ice bath for 10 to 15 minutes before storing in a freezer-safe zip-top bag. Just maybe not eggplant parmesan. Eggplant, like mushrooms, takes on the flavors of the other ingredients that it is prepared with.

It works great as a replacement for starchy vegetables and is the perfect veggie to add volume to stir-fries, soups, and stews. It can even be sliced thin and wide and substitute for lasagna noodles or spiralized for a linguine effect. This spicy vegetarian curry is made with tender chunks of eggplant and chickpeas and flavored with fresh chili and other spices.

The creamy coconut milk base transforms it from the mundane into something very, very wonderful. Serve it over brown rice or riced cauliflower for a tasty and hearty meal. Find the recipe on our sister site, Foodal. Are you looking for a healthy dip to serve at your next gathering? Get ready to dunk all of those chips, pita pieces, and celery or carrot sticks into something a little different with a whole lot of tasty.

Try this healthy hummus inspired by baba ghanoush! The classic flavors of hummus are combined with perfectly roasted eggplant and garlic. Because eggplant is sensitive to transplant shock, start seeds in larger 4-inch containers I like this type from Amazon and harden off plants before planting them in the garden.

In the low desert of Arizona, the best time to plant eggplant is during the month of March. Space plants 18 — 24 inches apart. If using square foot gardening , allow square feet for each plant.

Flea beetles, aphids, and potato beetles are common pests of eggplant. Use row covers to deter them until plants are large enough to withstand a little damage. If pests are persistent, leave row covers in place through harvest time. Small fruits have the best taste, and frequent harvesting encourages more production. Eggplant stems are brittle. To harvest, clip fruit with some stem attached. Can be harvested when at least half the size of mature fruit. Eggplant does not freeze or can well.

Do not store eggplant in the fridge, but in a cool, moist well-ventilated area. Naturally low in calories but high in fiber, eggplant can be grilled, fried, breaded, roasted, stewed, or sauteed.

Eggplant is also an excellent meat substitute and an essential element in Italian cooking. There are several dishes where eggplant is the star — think eggplant parmesan or baba ghanoush. Thanks to their broad leaves, eggplant seedlings grow quickly, gaining size faster than tomatoes or peppers.

If you have a long, warm growing season and use a split season planting plan, you can start seeds in midsummer for a fall crop. Set out the seedlings out during a spell of cloudy weather.

Growing eggplant would be ridiculously easy if not for eggplant flea beetles. These tiny hoppers make minuscule holes in leaves of nightshade family plants — potatoes, tomatoes, and wild hosts like horse nettle and jimsonweed — but eggplant is their favorite food. The first tip I ever learned for sidestepping flea beetle problems was to grow the plants on a raised table, in dark colored nursery pots, for as long as possible.

I pot up the seedlings as they grow, and set them out when their roots fill a 4-inch 10cm pot and the plants are quite stocky. Large, vigorous plants can outgrow modest flea beetle damage, and young plants are easy to protect with row covers made from tulle wedding net , which keeps out most flea beetles but does not retain heat.

When the plants begin to bloom, remove the covers so bees can reach the flowers.