Content

• Steps
• Method 1 of 4: Preparation
• Method 2 of 4: Planting Seeds
• Method 3 of 4: Transplanting seedlings
• Method 4 of 4: Leaving and Harvesting
• Tips
• Warnings
• What do you need

Eggplants need a lot of space to grow, but you can grow them in trays if they are large enough. A lot of sunlight is the key to keeping the eggplant safe, primarily because the eggplant needs to grow in warm soil. You should also make sure that the soil is well moistened, but at the same time, so that the water does not stand in it, as well as add fertilizers and organic matter.

Steps

Method 1 of 4: Preparation

1. 1 Buy small pots or plastic garden trays if you are going to start growing eggplant from seed. You need one pot for every two seeds. Planting seeds in trays and other containers made of cheap plastic can make it easier for you to transplant seedlings into larger pots.
2. 2 Choose a large tray. It should have a capacity of about 20 liters as a minimum, and each eggplant should have approximately 30.5 cm of growth space. As a result, you can only plant one eggplant in the tray.
3. 3 Choose an earthenware tray. Eggplant loves warmth, and clay trays retain heat better than plastic. Choose an uncovered tray if you remember to water your plants too often. But if you forget to do this, it is better to choose a glass-lined tray. Uncovered trays dry the soil more quickly than glazed trays, so eggplant in uncovered trays will need to be watered more frequently.
   • Clay trays are also heavier than plastic trays, making them more capable of supporting the weight of mature eggplant.
   • The tray should also have large drainage holes to help balance soil moisture levels. Drainage holes will allow excess water to drain out of the tray, minimizing the risk of root rot.
4. 4 Wash the litter box, especially if other plants have grown in it before. Gently scrub the inside and outside of each tray with soap and warm water. If you do not clean the tray, microscopic insect eggs and harmful bacteria inside the tray can damage the eggplants.
5. 5 Prepare the culture medium. A good and simple option is a mixture of two parts soil and one part sand. The soil will provide the nutrients it needs, while the sand will provide moisture control. Mix some compost and 5-10-5 fertilizer with soil to provide additional nutrition. Fertilizer 5-10-5 contains a fairly moderate concentration of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium, with a small addition of phosphorus, and promotes the growth of deeper roots and the eggplant themselves.
6. 6 Buy a small support system. Without any support, your eggplants will grow very poorly upward and, as a result, they will produce very little fruit. You can buy a tomato net or posts. This should be enough to provide the plant with adequate support.

Method 2 of 4: Planting Seeds

1. 1 Start growing your seeds indoors to get the first seedlings in the growing season. Eggplants require temperatures of 12.8 degrees Celsius or higher, which can be difficult to get outdoors during the spring. You can start growing eggplants indoors as early as April.
2. 2 Fill small trays or trays with the filler mixture. The soil should flow freely in the tray, but it should not be crushed.
3. 3 Punch a 1 ¼ cm hole in the center of each tray. Use your little finger or the rounded end of a pen or pencil to make a good diameter hole.
4. 4 Place two seeds in each hole. Planting two seeds will improve the chances of at least one of them germinating. Planting more than two seeds can deprive the seed of adequate nutrition for root germination.
5. 5 Coat the seeds with additional filler mixture. Loosen the soil slightly over the seeds instead of tamping it down.
6. 6 Set the trays or trays on a warm, sunny windowsill. Choose a window that is sunny, that is, one that receives direct sunlight for at least 8 hours a day. Full sun provides enough light and warmth to stimulate growth.
7. 7 Water the seeds. The soil should be moist to the touch at all times, but do not overdo it, especially when using trays without drainage holes. You don't want to make puddles on top of the soil, do you? But you should also strive to ensure that the soil never dries out.
8. 8 Divide the seedlings as soon as they sprout into two sets of leaves. There should be a stronger seedling in each tray, and simply cut the weaker one to ground level, but do not pull out so as not to disturb the root system.

Method 3 of 4: Transplanting seedlings

1. 1 Prepare the eggplants for transplanting once the plants are at least 15 1/4 cm tall. Only do this if the weather outside is warm enough. Do your best to keep your eggplants outdoors at all times, even in trays, so they have better access to sunlight and can be pollinated.
2. 2 Set up a support system in a permanent tray. Place the tomato net or posts flat on the bottom of the tray in an upright position.
3. 3 Fill a permanent tray with litter. Tamp the soil around the sprouts and make sure the uprights are firmly in place. Leave 1 inch (2.5 cm) of empty space between the top of the soil and the edge of the tray.
4. 4 Dig a hole in the ground, deep and wide, like in a tray of seedlings. The hole should be in the center of the tray.
5. 5 Remove the strong seedling from its previous tray. Weaker seedlings should already be pruned.
   • Moisten the soil to make it as compact as possible. It will be easier to transplant into moist and compact soil than into dry and crumbly soil.
   • If the seedlings are in a cheap plastic tray, you can "wiggle" the tray by bending the plastic.
   • If the seedlings are in a hard tray, you may need to gently move the flocks to the side, just below the seedlings. Tilt the tray on its side and slowly lift the seedlings out of the pot.
6. 6 Place the seedling in the opening of the new tray. Keep the seedlings as straight as possible.
7. 7 You will need extra filler around the seedling to hold it in place. Do not press too hard as this can damage the root system. You must fill in the empty space to ensure that the seedlings are firmly in place.
8. 8 Water the soil. Water the plant thoroughly, but do not allow puddles to form on the topsoil.

Method 4 of 4: Leaving and Harvesting

1. 1 Place the tray in a sunny place. An outdoor location that has constant access to the sun is ideal, as both light and sun are essential for a good harvest. Eggplant grows well in warm soil.
2. 2 Water the eggplant daily. In hot and dry weather, they need to be watered several times a day. Try the surface of the soil with your fingertips and water it if it's dry. If you allow the soil to dry out, the eggplant harvest will decrease.
3. 3 Add liquid fertilizer once every 1 to 2 weeks. Use water soluble fertilizer and water the eggplant before adding fertilizer to the soil. Do not add fertilizer to dry soil. Follow the directions on the back label to determine the appropriate amount.
   • If the eggplant leaves are starting to fade, you may need more fertilizer. Adding a 5-10-5 fertilizer should help a lot if lack of nutrition is the only problem. A higher fertilizer number, which means a higher percentage of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium, may be too strong.
   • Do not dig deeper than 1 1/4 cm when adding fertilizer. Digging deeper can break the roots, which are already quite small.
4. 4 Monitor soil pH. Soil with a pH between 6.3 and 6.8 should meet the needs of the eggplant. Litmus paper or a pH meter can give you an accurate reading.
   • If you need to raise the pH, try using agricultural lime.
   • If you need to lower the pH, add additional organic matter such as compost or plant debris, or switch to a urea fertilizer.
5. 5 Tying the eggplant greens on a stack will help them grow upward. When the plant begins to rise, loosely tie the stem of the plant to a net or post with twine or thin thread. Tying too tightly with the thread can damage the stem or suffocate it.
6. 6 Watch out for pests. Caterpillars are among the most common pests to attack eggplants, but they can be ward off by placing a rim around the plant. You may also consider using organic pesticides, which will deter caterpillars and many other pests.
7. 7 Once the eggplant skin is glossy, you can harvest. The fruit should stop growing and, in many cases, will reach the size of a large orange at this point. The time it takes to ripen depends on the type of eggplant you choose, but eggplants are usually ready to harvest within two or three months after the initial planting of seeds.
   • Use a pruning shears to cut the eggplant from its vine. The fruit should have a short stem.

Tips

• You can buy eggplant seedlings from garden nurseries rather than start growing eggplant from seed. Just follow the planting instructions given above from the “Transfer” step. Plant the seedlings in early June to keep the soil warm.
• Many types of eggplant are good for growing in trays. Sweat black is one of those recently started to be bred and which is intended for trough landscaping. Blackjack and Super Hybrid are both highly resistant to fungus, wilting, diseases that commonly affect eggplants and significantly reduce yields. Beginners can try hansel or a fairy tale. If you would like to grow white eggplants, you can try Gretel.

Warnings

• Be careful with pesticides, antifungal treatments, and other chemicals you spray on your eggplant. Many of these substances are not safe to consume, which means that you should not use them on the vegetables you are about to eat. Always check product labels before using them on your plants.

What do you need

• Eggplant seeds
• Eggplant seedlings
• Plastic seedling trays or small pots
• Large clay trays
• The soil
• Fertilizers
• Watering can or hose
• Support system