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Choose the site. Japanese eggplants prefer full sun and lots of warmth, so choose a planting area in your garden that gets at least six hours of direct sunlight per day. Prepare the soil. Japanese eggplants prefer loamy, well-draining soil with a pH between 6.0 to 6.5.
Are Japanese eggplants easy to grow?
The Ichiban eggplant is favored for its sweet flesh that is creamy when cooked and pureed into dishes such as baba ghanoush. Growing the purple-hued fruit is as easy as other common garden crops, such as tomatoes and peppers.
What is the best way to plant eggplant?
Eggplants grow into tall, angular plants, so they should be spaced 24 to 36 inches apart. Improve planting holes by mixing in 2 inches of compost to help hold moisture and fertilizer in the soil. Set plants at the same depth at which they are growing in their containers, and water well before spreading mulch.
What month do you plant eggplant?
When to Plant Eggplant Eggplants can only grow in warm soil—50 degrees Fahrenheit or above. The best time to plant eggplant is in late spring after the last threat of frost. Eggplants have a long growing season, so you’ll need to start them indoors around eight weeks before your region’s last frost date.
Does Japanese eggplant need a trellis?
Staking or caging the seedlings can help keep the plants secure when they start growing heavy fruits (since Japanese eggplants are smaller than globe eggplants, supports aren’t necessary but can still be helpful).
Should you stake Japanese eggplant?
Like tomatoes and peppers, eggplants should be staked for optimum growth and yield (Figure 2). Staking keeps the eggplant fruit from touching the ground, which reduces disease and improves fruit shape, particularly on elongated fruit. Staking also makes harvesting easier.
What is the best fertilizer for eggplant?
A balanced fertilizer (10-10-10) is often recommended for eggplant. Feeding too much nitrogen at this point can result in large, leafy plants that fail to produce fruit.
How often should eggplant be watered?
Watering. Eggplant also needs consistent water, at least 1 inch per week. It is better to give one thorough soaking than several frequent, short waterings, because frequent watering promotes shallow roots. Weather and soil type, of course, will affect water demand.
Are eggplants easy to grow?
Growing eggplant would be ridiculously easy if not for eggplant flea beetles. Eggplant is among the few vegetables that don’t mind warm roots, so they grow well in roomy containers provided the plants are given plenty of water.
How do you fertilize eggplant?
Reapply the pelleted fertilizer after 10-12 weeks. Fertilize weekly with a soluble fertilizer. Until the plants start to flower use a balanced fertilizer with a 1-1-1 ratio such as 20-20-20 or 20-30-20. Once flowering starts switch to a high potassium blend such as 9-15-30 or any fertilizer with a 1-1.5-3 or 4 ratio.
Does eggplant come back every year?
Although eggplant is a perennial, it is more commonly grown as an annual. Eggplant flowers are star-shaped in various shades of purple and usually form on opposite leaves as either solitary blooms or grouped in clusters of two or more.
How long does it take for eggplants to grow?
Eggplants are ready to harvest as soon as 70 days after sowing the seeds. Harvest fruits with skin that is glossy and thin. Eggplants can be harvested when they are small, though growing them longer allows for a larger harvest. Harvestable fruits should be firm and inside seeds should not be visible once cut open.
Can eggplant and tomatoes be planted together?
Tomatoes are often used as eggplant companions. Again, be sure not to shade the eggplant. Potatoes and spinach are also said to make great companion plantings too.
How do you fertilize Japanese eggplant?
Fertilizer. ‘Ichiban’ eggplant is a heavy feeder, needing fertilizer on a regular basis. Before planting, mix 2 to 3 pounds of a granular, 15-5-10 formula into the soil for each 100 square feet of planting area. Then feed the plants with more fertilizer monthly, starting one month after planting.
How long do Japanese eggplants grow?
Add a cage to your eggplant to help support stems when heavy with fruit. Place in full sun, and feed regularly. Matures in 50 to 60 days.
How many eggplants do you get from one plant?
The standard eggplant produces egg-shaped, glossy, purple-black fruit. ‘Black Beauty’ is the traditional eggplant size. One plant produces 4 to 6 large rounded fruit.
Do eggplants climb?
Does eggplant grow upright or is it supposed to fall into a vine and grow on the ground? It grows upright on a shrubby plant, but the fruit can get so heavy that it pulls the plant down. Use a plant stake or cage to hold the plants upright.
How far apart should eggplant be planted?
Choose a location in your garden where you have not grown tomatoes, potatoes, peppers, eggplants and tomatillos for the past three or four years. Practice crop rotation. Space eggplants 18 inches apart, in rows 30 to 36 inches apart.
How do you grow eggplant in a raised bed?
Try growing eggplants in raised beds, which heat up quickly in spring. Plants given plenty of room are healthier and more productive, so space them 2½ to 3 feet apart in all directions. Water well, pour 1 to 2 cups of compost around each plant, and firm the soil gently.
How deep do eggplant roots go?
Eggplants roots reach about 2 feet deep and plants should not be subjected to water stress. Stress during the bloom can cause substantial reduction in fruit set. Keep adequate moisture in the deeper soil layers even when plants are small.
