How to Grow an Eggplant in a Pot | Aubergine Care
04.07.2023 - 12:21
/ balconygardenweb.com
Common Names: Solanum melongena, Aubergine, Brinjal, Baingan, Vankaya, Berengena, Berinjela
Eggplant is a perennial tropical vegetable plant native to South and East Asia (namely, China and India) and a member of the tomato family. The plant loves heat and full sun and requires evenly moist soil in its native environment to thrive and fruit heavily.
These are medium-sized bushes, and nowadays, much more dwarf and compact cultivars are available for limited space gardeners. Similar to the other cousins of the nightshade family, e.g., tomatoes and peppers, it is possible to grow this vegetable in a container.
Growing eggplants in pots is possible in two ways– Either start them using seeds or buy the seedlings from a nearby nursery or garden center. If you’re new to growing plants and have not grown them much– purchase a few seedlings of your favorite eggplant variety. This will make things hassle-free! If you’ve decided to germinate them from seeds, then that is also relatively easy.
Usually, in the spring, it’s the season when eggplant seedlings are transplanted on the ground when all the dangers of frost are passed. BUT container-grown eggplants can be planted in summer and even in early fall if you’re ready to move the pots here and there to control the temperature, especially during the night time when the temperature dips down. If you’re growing eggplants in a hot and warm frost-free climate, planting in winter is also possible.
Ensure you plant up to two seeds in each cell of a seedling tray or directly sow two seeds in each container. Remember, the eggplants require a lot of warmth for germination, more than tomatoes and peppers. Therefore, if you think the outdoors is not warm enough (temperature above 68 F (20 C) is