Eggplant – Solanum melongena

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eggplant

I have found eggplants to be a reliable crop as long as they get plenty of sun and a long growing season. My current favourite growers are:

• white/yellow globular that grow to about 20cm long
• long thin black thai style
• tiny pea sized green thai style
• small purple striped round turkish

These all grow well with the standard range of manures and plenty of water. They are started as seed in early spring and then transplanted into the ground late spring to get a burst of growth and heat to start the fruiting process. They seem to enjoy the protected period in small pots as seedlings to get them started.

The turkish if picked small are fantastic just grilled whole or sliced in half as a side dish.

This year I have had a problem with a strange beetle biting into the fruit when small forming large holes as they grow – but I have a strategy planned  for this next growing season involving other high repulsive oil herbs in between them. Hopefully that will reduce the problem by stopping them from getting near the plant and fruit.