Eggplants are something I rarely buy, mainly because they're usually kind of expensive and they're not a good impulse purchase because they need to be used right away or they'll go bad.
I do love eggplant, though. Eggplant Parmesan is such a treat! It's really not hard to prepare, either, but Mozzarella and Parmesan cheeses are two ingredients I rarely have on hand unless I'm planning lasagna or calazones. And breadcrumbs.
And baba ganoush. I love baba ganoush, but I never have tahini on hand.
The thing about growing my own eggplants is that I can plan ahead while they are developing and get my ingredients together in advance.
Starting eggplant from seed is easy. They are in the same family as tomatoes and peppers and germinate quickly.
I planted three seeds per three inch pot, about a quarter inch deep in good potting soil. I don't like to cover starting pots with plastic wrap because the soil can stay too wet and cause the seeds to rot.
When the plants were six to eight inches tall and had several sets of true leaves, I hardened off the ones that would be transplanted to the garden. For the ones I planned to grow in the greenhouse, I removed them from the small pot and carefully separated the plants, holding them by a leaf and teasing the roots apart. I then planted two plants six inches apart in a five gallon bucket filled with a mix of potting soil and compost amended with about a quarter cup of Nature's Care plant food.
Growing eggplants in the greenhouse is an experiment. They were started about a month after the ones in the garden. I'll see how it goes. So far, the foliage is very lush and healthy. The plants have blossomed and I'm waiting to see if the blossoms make fruit. Things look good, it's just a matter of whether pollination was successful.
When I transplanted the seedlings to the garden, I mixed finished compost and plant food into the planting hole. The eggplants are in the same bed with tomatoes and peppers, so they get water from the same soaker hose and they are well mulched to conserve moisture and prevent competition from weeds. I top dress every few weeks with good plant food.
It shouldn't be long before I have ripe eggplants and I hope to have eggplants producing fruit in the greenhouse well into the end of fall. Maybe we'll have eggplant Parmesan for Thanksgiving.
Stephen
I do love eggplant, though. Eggplant Parmesan is such a treat! It's really not hard to prepare, either, but Mozzarella and Parmesan cheeses are two ingredients I rarely have on hand unless I'm planning lasagna or calazones. And breadcrumbs.
And baba ganoush. I love baba ganoush, but I never have tahini on hand.
The thing about growing my own eggplants is that I can plan ahead while they are developing and get my ingredients together in advance.
Starting eggplant from seed is easy. They are in the same family as tomatoes and peppers and germinate quickly.
I planted three seeds per three inch pot, about a quarter inch deep in good potting soil. I don't like to cover starting pots with plastic wrap because the soil can stay too wet and cause the seeds to rot.
When the plants were six to eight inches tall and had several sets of true leaves, I hardened off the ones that would be transplanted to the garden. For the ones I planned to grow in the greenhouse, I removed them from the small pot and carefully separated the plants, holding them by a leaf and teasing the roots apart. I then planted two plants six inches apart in a five gallon bucket filled with a mix of potting soil and compost amended with about a quarter cup of Nature's Care plant food.
Growing eggplants in the greenhouse is an experiment. They were started about a month after the ones in the garden. I'll see how it goes. So far, the foliage is very lush and healthy. The plants have blossomed and I'm waiting to see if the blossoms make fruit. Things look good, it's just a matter of whether pollination was successful.
When I transplanted the seedlings to the garden, I mixed finished compost and plant food into the planting hole. The eggplants are in the same bed with tomatoes and peppers, so they get water from the same soaker hose and they are well mulched to conserve moisture and prevent competition from weeds. I top dress every few weeks with good plant food.
It shouldn't be long before I have ripe eggplants and I hope to have eggplants producing fruit in the greenhouse well into the end of fall. Maybe we'll have eggplant Parmesan for Thanksgiving.
Stephen
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