Eggplant is a very unique plant for most home gardens and probably one of the lesser grown vegetables. The most famous recipe is in making eggplant parmesan, but they can be breaded and fried, baked, grilled, stewed, or used in dips.
Eggplant is often substituted for meat in vegetarian dishes, and is a main ingredient for Baba Ganoush.
One popular home garden cultivar of eggplant is ‘Black Beauty‘. This is the same cultivar I choose for my vegetable garden.
It produces large, plump, glossy eggplants that are very tasty. Eggplant is ready to harvest typically in 80-85 days.
How to Plant & Care for Eggplant
You can direct sow eggplant in hot climates. In northern climates, start seeds indoors 8 weeks before the last frost date and transplant at least 2 weeks after the last frost date. Use black plastic to keep the ground warm before planting in cooler climates.
Eggplant does best in rich, slightly acidic, well-draining soil with compost added. Eggplants need to be spaced about 24″ apart in rows at least 12″ apart. Eggplant can be either grown from seed or transplanted. Normally, I buy transplants from my local nursery due to the long growing period.
Eggplant thrives in hot, humid conditions.
Grow them under row covers in cool climates to increase the temperature around the plants. The plant will not set fruit where nighttime temperatures get below 65° F.
It is a good idea to mulch around the plants to help keep moisture and heat in the soil around the plants. Take care while weeding around young plants, so that you do not disturb the roots.
Eggplant is a very heavy feeder, so side-dressing the plants with well-rotted compost or manure twice a month is encouraged.
I also use fish emulsion for feedings. It’s some stinky stuff, but is an organic fertilizer that will not burn plants.
Some varieties of eggplant may become very large, and thus heavy. You may need to give the plant some support.
How to Harvest Eggplant
Cut fruits from the plant when they reach full cultivar color and are firm and glossy, about 60-90 days after transplanting ( could be longer or shorter depending on the cultivar you are growing).
Make sure to cut the fruits with shears to avoid damaging the plant. Clipping fruits regularly will help promote new ones to grow. For more information on harvesting eggplant, please read How and When To Pick Eggplant.
Pests & Diseases of Eggplant
Pick off any beetles, worms, and caterpillars you may find on the plants. Watch for the Colorado potato beetle in the western areas of the U.S.
Shake them off onto a sheet of paper then dispose. Protect young plants from flea beetles by covering with floating row covers.
Try to choose virus-resistant cultivars for your garden. Following clean growing practices can help to avoid blights.
Eggplant is very easy to grow and makes for a wonderful garden addition. They will also add excitement and color to your vegetable garden; not to mention a delicious item on the dinner table.
I love growing the white eggplant the best!! Not only is it tastier, the plant itself gets huge. Last year I had 3 white eggplant plants. They grew as tall as my 4th grade daughter and where almost as wide as they were tall. Each plant produced a range of 80-100 fruit each. Yes folks I got about a total of 250-300 eggplant off 3 plants.
The plant itself was so strong I didn’t even have to cage or stake it off.
I will use black plastic to warm the ground here in Southern Ohio this year. Once it’s hot here (July) I will remove the plastic and just rely on lots of compost. I’ve never had more than 6-8 eggplant fruit per plant so you’ve set a new goal for me. What variety did you use? Black Beauty is dependable and very tasty but it’ll never reach four feet tall and four feet wide here.
Good read. I have a garden myself, and I just found your site.
Will be visiting more often
My two eggplant plants are growing tall in Florida and gave us 3 delicious eggplants but now they are covered with flowers but no fruit. Any ideas why?
Hi Greg – It could be heat related if you are having very high temperatures currently. You may need to be just a bit more patience. If the temperatures are too high then they will set fruit.
Hi Tee! I enjoyed browsing through your website. I have a herb garden, but I’ve never grown vegetables before. An acquaintance gave me 4 eggplants from her garden. I love eggplant!! I have one left wich is mushy and wrinkle. Would I be successful planting it? I live in Marietta, GA. Thanks!
Hi Josi – You mean planting the eggplant itself? It might work, but I think you would have better success starting it from seed. Good luck!
Hi Tee! My 10 year old son planted some watermelon seeds in a pot. It is actually growing!! What should I do about it? Where to transplant? Is watermelon annual or perenial? Help…!
Hi Josi – You probably should transplant the seedlings in an area that gets at least 8 hours of sunlight per day. It needs to be a pretty large area – watermelon vines can spread out 8 – 10 feet. Make sure to water it well each day in hot weather. They are annuals.
Good luck! I hope you grow some nice melons!
We live on a farm with ready access to compost and manure. I went a bit overboard with them when beginning our garden this year. Much of the garden is doing really well but our big bushy eggplants and pepper plants are giving us next to nothing in flowers and veggies. Yes, I know…too much nitrogen! But how do I balance it out at this stage? Is it even possible?
Hi Katherine – You must have had a high amount of fresh manure. If adding compost (without any manures added) you can usually add as much as you want, or have available. Manures , especially fresh, can contain high levels of nitrogen and ammonia. That’s why I recommend composting most manures at least 6 months before adding them to garden soil.
The thing about nitrogen is it doesn’t stick around long. It dissipates pretty quickly due to rain and other factors. By next season the nitrogen levels should be low enough for planting eggplant and other vegetables. Leafy greens like cabbage, kale, collards, or lettuce will benefit from a little extra nitrogen. If the nitrogen is still a bit high there then you could plant some cole crops.
I would suggest getting a soil test kit (from Lowe’s or Home Depot) and test the N-P-K and pH of your soil to get an idea of exactly what your soil has.
If you have too much of a particular nutrient then the best thing to do is add and mix in compost (without any added manures). Adding copious amount of compost is the only way to balance your soil.
Do you know why my some of my eggplants have turn a yellow color?And some of them have a funny shape to them.Hope you can help me.This is my first time growing eggplants.
Thanks for the tips on when to pick.
I started my first eggplant from seed August 1, transplanted two 3″ plants on Sept 10 to Earthbox with a light composted soil plus 2 cups dolomite and 2 cups 7-7-7 fertilizer. Since then all I’ve done is water and take pictures!
They seem very easy to grow: no pests, no staking, no diseases until Nov 1 when I picked about 50 black and orange weevils off each plant!
The two plants are now 2 feet tall. One has 24 eggplants! Our night temps are in the low 60′s now so I don’t know if the other blossoms will set, but if 24 mature, that’s enough to make parmigian for the whole neighborhood!
I am a first time eggplant grower. I am in Orlando. I planted in October. The plant is now 3 ft tall loaded with purple flowers. It has been cool at night. Will the flowers turn to fruit?